Pauline Shaw

Pauline Shaw is a Taiwanese American artist whose practice centres on the exploration of the intersections between personal experience and broader ethnic and spiritual histories. Shaw's works reflect her profound appreciation for the diverse range of cultural and historical perspectives she has encountered throughout her life. She employs various techniques, such as weaving, dyeing, and embroidery, to create large-scale tapestries known for their intricate designs and craftsmanship, which harmoniously balance figurative and abstract elements.

Her textile works interrogate the acquisition and representation of themes such as personal history and cultural knowledge. She examines historical and contemporary depictions of memory, identity, and lineage through the lenses of scientific, spiritual, and cultural belief systems. By braiding together the extensive corpus of ancient Chinese mythology and decorative arts with science and the limitations of the body, Shaw proposes a methodology to fortify the fragility of diasporic narratives and the instabilities of identity.

Shaw's fascination with these symbols and mythologies has its roots in her childhood, where she was exposed to various cultural traditions and historical narratives. Her works reflect a deep appreciation for the diverse range of cultural and historical perspectives she has encountered throughout her life. In doing so, Shaw offers anchor points for her own identity as well as that of her culture, enabling further clarification and definition.

Pauline Shaw  (b. 1988 in Kirkland, US) received her BFA from Rhode Island School of Design and completed her MFA at Columbia University in 2019. Her work has been exhibited across Europe, USA and Asia. Recent exhibitions include Art Basel Hong Kong (Discoveries), In Lieu Gallery, Hong Kong (2023, solo); Expo Chicago, Micki Meng, Chicago (2023); Antonia Kuo & Pauline Shaw, Chapter Gallery, New York (2023); Vaster than Empires, Friends Indeed Gallery, San Francisco (2022); In Defense of Secrets, Downs & Ross, New York (2022); Signals, Someday Gallery, New York (2022); The Shed, New York (2021); Apostolic Succession, Spurs Gallery, Beijing (2021); ONLINE: Under Glass, Half Gallery, New York (2020); Institute of Contemporary Arts Singapore (2019); Chorus, Almine Rech, Paris (2019); and Domestic Horror, Gagosian, New York (2019). Shaw has been a resident artist at ISCP, New York in 2020 and followed the France Los Angeles Residency Exchange Program in 2014. The artist lives and works in Brooklyn, New York.