Synopsis

The Bodhi Tree in Bosch’s Garden’ is a film tracing the artist’s exploration of her father’s art archive made during the ‘90s. In her attempt to grasp the meaning of his notes and works, Maia relied on the cultural mediation of her best friend Yezi. Throughout their exploration, they encounter a series of peculiar absurdities. Yezi deeply resonates with both the work and the life story of Maia’s father, whom Maia herself barely knows. This triggers a complex interplay of appropriation, projection, intimidation, and admiration among the three characters — the father’s artworks, the daughter, and the friend. Their interactions form a composition, continually shifting by their perceptions of one another and the inherent gaps that emerge. Within this dynamic, the camera plays a crucial role as a fourth character, intensifying frictions between life and art, identity, migration and its disillusionments, anarchist dreams and institutional structures.

Curators’ note

Director’s bio

Based in Rotterdam, Maia Liu (born 1999, Belgium) graduated from the painting program at KASK & Conservatorium Ghent and earned her Master of Fine Arts from the Piet Zwart Institute in 2024.

In her work she explores the themes of identity and relationality. In her earlier, sculptural works she used everyday objects and the human body to examine and deconstruct the duality of 'sameness' and 'similarity'. At Piet Zwart Institute, she made her first film, investigating the psychological dimensions of duality and relationality through a practice of collaboration.

Director‘s statement

The Bodhi Tree in Bosch’s Garden explores identity and relationality, intertwining personal and collective histories. The film follows two interconnected journeys: my exploration of my father’s conceptual art archive from before his 2005 move to China, and my evolving friendship with Yezi, a Chinese artist who recently relocated to the Netherlands. These narratives examine how we relate to others, driven by the search for identity and representation.

Ethical dilemmas arise—manipulation versus integrity, appropriation versus receptivity—as my father’s bold concepts, such as “Negate yourself” and “Abandon cultural identity,” intersect with Yezi’s expressive radicalism and my own quest for understanding. This triangular dynamic of projection, admiration, and intimidation is mirrored by the camera, which serves as a pivotal fourth character.

The film also reflects on the concept of mirroring: personal histories resonate with collective ones (colonialism, migration), ‘Small me’ converges with ‘Big me,’ and Leopold (my father’s Western name) parallels Leopold (king of Belgium).

Marking my transition from sculpture to filmmaking, the project blends archival footage, handheld shots, and digital recordings, emphasizing filmmaking as both a tactile process and a constructed form. It serves as a sincere document of my creative journey, inviting viewers to reflect on identity, history, and the interplay between ethics and aesthetics.

Festival & Awards

Nominated for best experimental short at HiShort! 2024 Film festival (Xiamen, CH)

Casts

ezi Lin (main performance), Leopold Liu (archival footage), Maia Liu

Credits

Editor: Maia Liu

Sound mix: Sebastiaan Verbeeten