How do artists bring history to life?
Photographs, archival records, family stories and community memories offer different ways of understanding the past and its relevance today.
Join Chinese Australian artists Tianli Zu, William Yang and Guan Wei as they share how Chinese Australian histories and lived experiences inform their creative practice. From papercutting and multimedia art to photography, storytelling and painting, this panel explores the connections between art, memory, identity and belonging.
Moderated by Dr Shuxia Chen, the conversation extends themes from MOCA’s Merchants of Haymarket exhibition, inviting audiences to consider whose stories are remembered and how art can open new perspectives on the past.
Each artist will give a short presentation, followed by a panel conversation and audience Q&A.
Meet the artists
Tianli Zu
Born in Beijing and based in Sydney since 1988, Tianli Zu is an award-winning multimedia artist whose practice spans papercuts, sculpture, painting, animation and installation. Her presentation, Storytelling: Chinese Migrants Through Papercuts, explores how research into early Chinese migrants in the Shoalhaven has developed into contemporary artworks.
William Yang
William Yang is a photographer, writer and performer who has documented Sydney’s social life since 1970. His photographic monologues combine personal stories with explorations of identity. His work has toured internationally, and he received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Sydney Theatre Awards in 2022.
Guan Wei
Born in Beijing, Guan Wei lives and works between Beijing and Sydney. He has held more than 80 solo exhibitions internationally and participated in major international biennials and triennials. His awards include the Sulman Prize, the Arthur Guy Memorial Prize and the 2024 Creative Australia Award for visual arts.
Your moderator
Dr Shuxia Chen
Dr Shuxia Chen is a Senior Lecturer in Curating and Cultural Leadership at UNSW Art & Design and Chair of the Creative Asia Network.
Capacity: 100 places
This event is co-presented with Creative Asia Network, UNSW.
Every ticket supports MOCA’s work preserving and sharing Chinese Australian history.
