2025CAOSHU Portfolio.pdf

Cao Shu (b. 1987, Shandong), an artist based in Hangzhou, explores the interplay between memory, dreams, and technology through diverse media like 3D-rendered animation, video game installations, multi-screen projections, and sculpture. His work constructs intricate narrative labyrinths that blur reality and the virtual, creating digitally rendered "memory excavation sites." Recent explorations delve into themes of "socialist sci-fi," encryption technology, and the collective subconscious, critically examining technology's impact on the human psyche. His accolades include the OCAT x KADIST Young Media Artist Award (2022), Shanghai PRO Exposure Award (2021), BISFF Art Exploration Award (2017), and being shortlisted for the Italy Ducato Prize 2025 and E.A.T. Prize (2024). His work has been exhibited internationally at venues such as Kunsthaus Baselland, Macao Museum of Art, White Rabbit Gallery Sydney, Matadero Madrid, M+ Museum Hong Kong, UCCA Dune, Power Station of Art Shanghai, and Sleep Center New York. He has undertaken residencies at Atelier Mondial, Basel (2017), Koganecho Bazaar, Yokohama (2019), and Muffatwerk, Munich (2023). His films have been selected in official competition unit of festivals including DOK Leipzig, Annecy, DMZ Docs Korea, Milano, Ottawa, and Hannover. His work is held in collections like the Kadist Art Foundation San Francisco, White Rabbit Gallery Sydney, HOW Art Museum Shanghai, BY ART MATTERS, Blue Mountain Art Foundation Vienna, and Zhejiang Art Museum.

Solo Exhibitions

Afterglow and Theremin, HOW Art Museum, Shanghai, 2024

Go to Rome, Imagokinectics, Hangzhou, 2021

Hotel Smoke and Ash, Munich Muffatwerk, Munich, 2023

The Ocean of Solaris, Zhejiang Art Museum, Hangzhou, 2019

Flux, Shanghai University of Science and Technology Exhibition Hall, Shanghai, 2019 

Monster Outside the Windows, Koganecho, Yokohama, 2019

Group Exhibitions

2024

The Perfect Path——La Biennale di Venezia Special Program，China Academy of Art Museum，Hangzhou,2024

The Gazing lens,M+ MUseum,Hongkong,2024

Place and Narration-Annual Exhibition of 2023 Chinese Contemporary Video Arts, Duolun Art Museum, Shanghai, 2024

Three-Body Art Project · Prologue: First Contact,SUHE HAUS,Shanghai,2024

Dunhuang Museum of Contemporary Art Opening Exhibition, Dunhuang Museum of Contemporary Art, Shanghai, 2024

Tangent Experiments, Gravity Field Art Museum, Shenzhen, 2024

Sparking into Sparkling, No.1 Xintiandi, Shanghai, 2024

Night Pieces,Three Shadows Xiamen Photography Art Centre,Xiamen,2024

Encoding Phenology: The Cosmic Rhythm of Digital and Biological Interweaving,Times Art Museum, Beijing, 2024

Wuhan Biennale, Wuhan, Wuhan Art Museum, 2024

Conjure: Backstage Performances in a Simulated World, Power Station of Art( PSA), Shanghai, 2024

Study 2: Nature History, Alternative Knowledge and Deep Learning, ShanghART Gallery, Beijing, 2024

Cosmic Archaeology, Shanghai Astronomy Museum, Shanghai, 2024

Asia Walk, Ota Fine Arts, Tokyo

"Dialogue in the Dark": Cloud Wondering, Positive Art Research Center, Hangzhou

Chengdu International Photography Festival, Chengdu Contemporary Image Museum, Chengdu

2023

Vortex in Beijing:Five Moments at Nightfall，Macalline Art Center, Beijing

I Am The People, White Rabbit Gallery，Sydney

Motion is Action：35 Years of Chinese Media Art，BY ART MATTERS，Hangzhou

Contains it like lines of a hand，Tang Shaoyi former residence，Shanghai

X Museum Triennial 2023: Home Is Where the Haunt Is，X Museum ，Beijing

Coding for the people，Qingdao

Rising Flags，Museum in Progress，Austria

If the trouble was money, Pfeuferstr. 38, Munich

Invisible Maps: Give space，BY ART MATTERS，Hangzhou

Hide and Seek - The Photographic Vision of Childhood,Being Art Museum, Shanghai

2022

The Exhibition of Annual of Contemporary Art of China 2021, 798Art Center, Beijing

Thinking Through Ocean, Topred Center for Contemporary Art , Xiamen

9th Bi-City Biennale of Urbanism Architecture,GDH City,Shenzhen

Memory hurts me, Matadero Madrid Contemporary Art and Culture Center, Madrid

In Solidarity with ____? | 2022 "OCAT × KADIST  Emerging Media Artist Program" Exhibition, OCAT Shanghai, Shanghai

Art's language , Artists' Game,OCAT Shenzhen,Shenzhen

Shape the Future - The 8th Shanghai Duolun Youth Art Exhibition, Shanghai Duolun Museum of Modern Art, Shanghai

"Body and Cosmos" the art of living together, Xie Zilong Photography Museum, Changsha

2021

Slowly Arriving, Kunsthausbaselland, Basel

Multi-Prismatic Mutual Views - International Contemporary Art Invitational Exhibition, Macao Art Museum, Macao

#TGIF (thank God it's funny), Brownie project, Shanghai

The Timing of Drifters, Martin Goya business, Hangzhou

The Long Cut，Feral File Exhibition Online

Mcisture，Riverside，Hangzhou

Archives of Possible World，Xiangshan art commune，Hangzhou

HD world unit, Asia Society Hong Kong Center, Hong Kong

Guerrillas in Flatland: Unite! Digital Voyagers，PSA Shanghai Museum of contemporary art，Shanghai

New drive: the collision between art and technology, Shenyang K11 Art Center, Shenyang

Pad Dimension:Visual Art Form Graph to Virtual, Zhejiang Art Museum, Hangzhou

Space Oddity, UCCA Dune, Qinhuangdao

2020

Cyprus International Animation Festival,Salamiu

"Cut keyframe" Chinese Animation Art Invitational Exhibition, Wuhan K11 Art Center, Wuhan

Hangzhou "best design", Baimahu International Convention and Exhibition Center, Hangzhou

"One day world" vlog, PSA Shanghai Museum of contemporary art, online

Hua Niao Island International Animation Festival, Hua Niao Island, Zhoushan

Back to reality, martingoya business, Hangzhou

2019

PPPP and Friends，Fiber Space，Beijing

Koganecho BAZAAR 2019，Koganecho，Yokohama

The Exhibition of Annual of Contemporary Art of China 2018，Minsheng Art Museum,Beijing

 21st Cairo International Animation Forum,Cairo

Lighthouse International Charity Film Festival,Museum of CAFA,Beijing

CHAI film festival,Leipzig

25. Film Festival della Lessinia,Verona

2018

The 4th Shenzhen Independent Animation Biennale,OCT Contemporary Art Terminal,Shenzhen,Shenzhen

“Cross Domain”Sino-Japanese Youth Art Exhibition,Jin Ji Lake Art Museum,Suzhou

China-Canada Experimental Animation Exhibition,Tongniu Movie Industry Park,Beijing

Leipzig International Documentary and Animation Festival,Leipzig

Post Southern Song Dynasty,KWM Art Center,Beijing

23rd Milano Film Festival,Milano

XXVIII Message to Man International Film Festival,Saint-Petersburg

Artecinema international festival of contemporary art film,Naples

Fiction Art,OCAT Shenzhen,Shenzhen

2018 Annecy Animation Film Festival,Annecy

Invitation Screen of Shanghartgallery 1st time,Shanghartgallery,Shanghai and Bejing

Pity Party,Sleep Center,NewYork

Blue Dream Animation Festival,Nuremberg

TED 2018 Conference Video Screen,Vancouver Convention Centre,Vancouver

OUT OF SERVICE, Art Museum of Nanjing University of the Arts

Presence -Young Artist Exhibition,China Academy of Art Museum,Hangzhou

2017

Atelier Mondial Exhibition 2017,Solon Mondial,Basel

EXiM2017 Cross-Straits Experimental Animation Festival,EXiM,Macao

Beijing International Short Film Festival,Ullens Center for Contemporary Art (UCCA),Beijing

15th International Film Festival of Asian Pacific Countries,Vladivostok

13th Korea independent Animation Film Festival,Seoul COEX Convention and Exhibition Center,Soel

New millennium airport Animation Festival,New millennium airport Theater,Hokkaido

39th Clermont-Ferrant International Film Festival,Clermont-Ferrant

2016

33. Kasseler Dokfest,Weinkirche Wine Cellar,Kasseler

Jimei Arles International Photography Festival,C-Art Plat,Xiamen

International animation Biennale,Shanghai

Hamburg "China Time" International Art Festival,DieSammlungFalckenberg Hall,Hamburg

2016 Whistler Film Festival,Whistler

Competition for Manchester Animation Festival 2016, Manchester

Ottawa International Animation Festival 2016, Ottawa

International Competition of 36th edition of the Brussels Animation Films Festival, Brussels

2016 Taichung International Animation Festival,Taichung

2016 Annecy Animation Festival,Annecy

VIS Vienna Independent Shorts Festival,Vienna

33rd Busan International Short Film Festival(BISFF),Busan

2016 Holland Animation Film Festival competition shorts HAFF 2016,Louis Hartlooper Complex,Utrecht

2015

Tenerife Shorts 2015,Tenerife Theater,Canary Islands

Hannover film festival,Hannoner Theater,Hannover

"Mythology" contemporary art exhibition, white box art museum, Beijing

31st International Short Film Festival Berlin,Berlin Babylon Theater,Berlin

“Animatou”International Animation Film Festival,Geneva Theater,Geneva

Anibar Animation Festival, Pristina

Concorto short film festival,Panorama Piacenza

International experimental short film competition,St. Petersburg

Long Week of Short Films,Minsheng Art Museum,Shanghai

International Short Film Festival 20min|max,Ingolstadt,Munich

The Bride Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors,Beijing

Drawing·Art of Re-Zuo,Nanjing Art Academy Museum,Nanjing

Deconstruction Aesthetic Forms and Their Opposites,Beijing

2015 Holland Animation Film Festival,Utrecht

2014

Animation & Digital Image in the Time of Interactive Media,China Academy of Art Museum,Hangzhou

Endless1 contemporary art exhibition,nomad gallery,Hangzhou

Top 15 China Academy of Art,China Academy of Art Museum,Hangzhou

The edge of nature|Hangzhou Experimental Video Artists Exhibition,Hangzhou

Hiroshima International Film Festival,Hiroshima

International artists detention project,Inna Art Space,Hangzhou

2014 Holland International Animation Film Festival,Utrecht