a poco art archive 一點居
Curatorial Project Space
and Artists Collective
Dec 14, 2024 - Feb 22, 2025
Uprooted Body
Alienation, Belonging and the Poetics of Pain
A Chang (He Yunchang)
Ruoyi Shi
Ray Ren
Shirley Tse
Sining Zhu
a poco art archive is proud to present "Uprooted Body: Alienation, Belonging, and the Poetics of Pain," an evocative group exhibition featuring the works of internationally acclaimed artists Shirley Tse, He Yunchang, and emerging talents Ray Ren, Sining Zhu, and Ruoyi Shi. Inviting audiences to explore the delicate intersections of alienation, identity, belonging, and the transformative power of pain, the exhibition opens December 14, 2024 and runs through February 22, 2025.
At the opening reception on December 14 at 7 PM, Ray Ren will debut a live performance art piece to further contextualize themes explored in this show, offering an immersive experience to connect with the conceptual underpinnings of his work in the show. On February 22 at 7 PM, it will conclude with an artist talk by Ruoyi Shi moderated by Ann Shi, and a closing reception
to follow.
"The personal is political, and the body is a battleground." — Barbara Kruger
The diasporic body, uprooted from its land of origin, serves as a living archive, carrying a history etched into its cells—an anthology of movements, memories, and languages. Migration is not merely the act of crossing physical borders; it is a journey through thresholds of identity, culture, and belonging. The weight of unfamiliar air presses differently against unaccustomed skin, and the soil beneath holds stories, languages, and scars that complicate the act of grounding oneself in new places. “Uprooted Body” delves into the profound tension between displacement and adaptation, the duality of estrangement and the longing for connection, and the dissonance of inhabiting a body that feels less like home and more like a battleground for transformation and negotiation.
This exhibition immerses viewers in the visceral experience of settling into foreign terrains—where the air feels alien, the land resists recognition, and even the elements challenge the body's claim to belonging. The space itself becomes an manifested body: the entrance features Ray Ren’s Tongue Diary that enveloped the immediate entry hallway and staircase, welcomes viewers with a slightly discomfort. As viewers climb into the “body” of the space, A Chang (or He Yunchang), pioneer of endurance performance art in China since early 1990s, explores his politicized body as his territory where he exercises democracy in “One Meter of Democracy”. Shirley Tse’s ongoing “Lompoc Stories series: The Discipline of D.E.,” where intentional deterioration symbolizes the fragility of belonging in a fragmented world, extends into her "Crowstrike" piece, inspired by a personal injury from a crow's fatal collision and reflecting the repeated injuries to California's scorched landscapes. Sining Zhu, Ruoyi Shi and Ray Ren interrogates how the body resists, reacts, and eventually integrates into its surroundings. The journey of the body ends with culmination in another of Ren’s works—a striking piece that evokes purging and repulsion through the metaphor of a toilet.
Curated by Ann Shi, Uprooted Body is a poignant response to the global experiences of dislocation and redefinition, presented at a critical juncture in history when the diasporic body and the female body face mounting threats amidst a shifting political landscape under a new presidency.
Opening Reception: December 14, 2024, 5 - 9 PM, with a live performance at 7 PM.
Closing Reception: February 22, 2025, 4 - 8 PM, with artist x curator talk at 7 PM.
Location: [Sent to email after reservation] Culver City, CA 90230
Reservation: Required via Calendly.
Viewing Hours: Thursday - Saturday, 11 AM - 6 PM or by appointment
Admission: Free. Donations welcomed.
For media inquiries, interviews, or additional information, please contact Ann Shi at ann@apoco.art.
About a poco art archive:
a poco art archive is an independent art space located in Culver City, dedicated to showcasing innovative and thought-provoking works that challenge conventional narratives and foster cultural dialogue, nestled within a loft apartment. It is a dynamic experimental curatorial studio dedicated to nurturing the voices of artists especially those that are young and emerging.
Founded by curator and art archivist Ann Shi, this intimate setting defies conventional exhibition norms, embracing experimentation, vulnerability, and the transformative potential of art. By offering a platform where contemporary practices intersect with traditional ideals, emerging artists are encouraged to take risks, explore uncharted territories, and confront traditional paradigms in their work. Through exhibitions, workshops, and interactive events, the space becomes a living archive of evolving artistic practices.
Curatorial Vision
Ann Shi (she/her) is an independent curator, art advisor, and USPAP-compliant art appraiser specializing in Chinese paintings. She is also an art archivist dedicated to elevating and documenting diaspora artists, with a particular focus on those recontextualizing contemporary Asia within historical narratives. Her curatorial practice is deeply rooted in Asian art and its philosophies, aiming to bridge indigenous and external perspectives in art history, exploring new dialogues around Asian identity in contemporary art. Her work is driven by a desire to reclaim agency for underrepresented voices, ensuring that their histories are told from a culturally and linguistically informed perspective, navigating within the Western institutional framework that has long shaped how Asian art is perceived and consumed, often reducing it to a narrow selection of artists deemed “global” enough for inclusion in exhibitions.
Born to an artist father who practices classical ink wash painting in the literati traditions and a musician and play actor mother, Ann was immersed in the arts from an early age. The interdisciplinary background informs her curatorial approach, which bridges traditional methodologies with contemporary critical discourses. Having trained in the methodologies of classical Chinese painting and navigated the contemporary art world as a curator, collaborator, and collector, she possesses an intimate understanding of the nuances in artistic traditions, language, and cultural semiotics that are often misinterpreted or overlooked in Western-centric curatorial practices. Her research-driven approach seeks to dismantle colonial biases and patriarchal structures in art history, particularly concerning Asian women artists marginalized by dominant institutional narratives.
Ann previously served as an associate curator at Rice University’s Chao Center for Asian Art and as an assistant curator at the Moody Center for the Arts. She continues to contribute as an advisory committee member for the Houston Asian American Archive and serves as independent curator roles at various organizations. Ann holds Bachelor's and Master's degrees in Mathematics (MMath with Honours) from University of Oxford, and an MA in Art Business with a focus on Contemporary Asian Art from Sotheby's Institute of Art.
Ann lives and works in New York, Los Angeles, and Houston.