Klik hier voor Nederlands
Before Chinese-born Yuchen Li (1991) arrived in the Netherlands, she had lived in various Asian countries. In Europe, however, she was suddenly considered a woman of colour. This experience of being seen as the other, as well as the question of how to encounter the other became the point of departure for her research into colonialism, Diaspora, identity, and migration. Li links the colonial past to the colonial present in her work, She does so because according to her, the climate crisis and the current political polarisation are the result of how we relate to the world: we consider it an objectified other that we can exploit and consume. That is why migration for Li is a process of establishing new relationships, both with humans and the environment, while carrying our embodied ancestral memories.
In The Elemental Atlas (2024), Li uses these memories and ancient knowledge systems outside the Western canon to search for answers. She also finds inspiration in The Classic of Mountains and Seas (山海经). These anonymous writings, with sources dating back to the 4th century BCE, provides a geographical overview of China. Li’s installation combines images, myths, and pieces of wisdom from the book with her own experiences in a collage. The four draperies represent the four cardinal directions and the four elements. In the centre they come together in the fifth element: the earth connecting us all. Li invites visitors to enter the installation as a site of reflection and meditation while hoping that this ancient knowledge will brings us renewed insights.
Texst: Esther Darley
Translated from Dutch by Marie Louise Schoondergang (The Art of Translation)