Territories change and borders shift as bodies—humans, animals, plants, and bacteria—migrate. This movement and displacement create a hybrid sense of ‘home’ and belonging. Identity is thus in a constant state of flux and reconstruction. Our understanding of soil and our relationship to it have evolved, reflecting a continuous flow of moving bodies.
In his 2009 essay The Radicant, Nicholas Bourriaud refers to a type of plant called a ‘radicant’. Unlike ‘radicle’ plants that only grow roots in one type of soil, radicants are capable to shoot roots and thrive in multiple types of soil and grow towards the light. This idea underpins his concept of alter-modernism—a form of modernism where abstract language is shaped not solely by Western ideas but by the disorienting interplay of multiple cultures.
The ‘radicant’ artist reflects this alter-modern world, embodying the archetype of the traveller who continuously transplants, re-roots, and moves in-between different cultural contexts. Such artists challenge fixed identities and dualistic categories by navigating and blending diverse worlds and times. They carry and express their multifaceted identities through the translation and transcoding of visual languages of multiple cultures. By positioning themselves in the cultural gaps and viewing time as non-lineair, they create new narratives where different worlds and times merge. This process produces new cultural artefacts, reflecting evolving, new hybrid cultures.
Curator Doron Beuns developed the exhibition concept inspired by Bourriaud’s essay, and I spoke to him about its key themes. The exhibition, titled Fluxus Corporum, translates to ‘flow of bodies’ in Latin. This project, a collaboration between contemporary art platform Semester 9 and Museum Perron Oost in Amsterdam, takes place at Peron Oost, the smallest museum in the Netherlands, located in a former stationmaster’s house. The museum’s historical setting, including railway tracks and a historic train carriage, serves as a powerful symbol of the continuous flow and transition of people across cultural territories.
The radicant artists featured in Fluxus Corporum are Baby Reni and Nazif Lopulissa. They embody the principles of alter-modernism by challenging traditional notions of identity. Through exchange, fusion, and translation in their work, they provide new perspectives on identity in a constantly changing world. First, Baby Reni inhabited the space with vibrant, playful mobiles that drift and sway in the air. Little trinkets of memories hanging from the mobiles capture treasures the artist has gathered throughout the years, from plastic beads and pearls she cherished as a teenager in her jewellery box, to a photo of a Strelitzia flower (Bird of Paradise) deemed ‘exotic’ by Dutch standards, and scraps of candy wrappers collected from family trips to Vietnam.
Growing up in the Netherlands with Vietnamese heritage, Baby Reni navigates the complexities of relating to both cultures. She translates her personal experiences with diverse cultural influences into her own universe, reusing and re-contextualising cultural elements to explore and layer the multiple histories that shape her identity. Her work highlights the fluidity of identities, demonstrating how they are continually reshaped through interactions with various cultures and environments.
The gaps in her work represent the unexpected and sometimes strange connections between paradoxes, making these connections visible and engaging with the intriguing spaces between them. Baby Reni explains, “However, in moving towards this destination, I don’t abandon my roots; instead, I incorporate them into the evolving story. I see myself as both a storyteller and a connector, where my work serves as a bridge. By inviting viewers into these layered, immersive worlds, I encourage them to reflect on their own journeys, understanding that identity is not a destination but a constant evolution shaped by the intersections of various cultural narratives. Through this, I hope to contribute to a larger conversation about navigating evolving cultural landscapes with openness and curiosity.”
Since August 17th, the building has been bathed in a strange pink neon light, creating a mystical atmosphere, especially at night. Lopulissa’s work, Strange Soil, explores the concept of ‘the radicant’—where the new home is built on unfulfilled promises. The installation reflects on the experiences of Moluccan soldiers of the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army and their families, who were promised by the Dutch government that they would return to their homeland after serving the military—an unfulfilled promise since 1951. The artificial neon light symbolises the artificial grow lights in greenhouses, mirroring the false hopes given to these displaced communities. When the new soil is not nourished or healthy, adaption becomes challenging and unsettling. Highlighting the friction between identity and the new environment, and the contradictions that arise from it.
“The moment a plant is taken out of its soil and placed somewhere else, the organism needs to redirect and grow towards its source of life, the sun. What if the sun doesn’t feel the same as back home, and the soil doesn’t provide the same comfort it has grown to love?,” asks Nazif Lopulissa in his work.
In his essay, Bourriaud suggests shifting the focus from origin to destination. I believe that engaging with the past inherently involves envisioning the future. Origin and destination go hand in hand. As artists, we choose what to carry forward and what to leave behind, acknowledging that transformation is both inevitable and necessary.
My main question to Doron was how we can establish roots in diverse environments while honouring our heritage and the new land. How can we intertwine our roots with new contexts to create narratives of belonging where multiple stories converge? Doron emphasises that art plays a crucial role in this process. By creating symbolic meaning in a new place through art or rituals, we can transform an unfamiliar place into a home.
In an increasingly polarised and uprooted world, what can alter-modernism teach us? Bourriaud suggests that it can foster productive dialogue through “healthy friction,” where opposing viewpoints generate new, hybrid perspectives. Doron adds that such friction can sometimes reveal that not all differences can be reconciled, and that’s okay. Art allows for freedom of experimentation, where contradictory elements can coexist or challenge conventions across cultures—clashing or merging with each other.
Baby Reni’s work exemplifies this concept. She notes, “I’ve noticed that viewers from various backgrounds often bring their own interpretations and cultural experiences to my installations, and this interaction creates an open dialogue. Some may see nostalgia in the candy wrappers and little toys I use, while others might connect to the beads as symbols of fashion or identity from their own youth. The interaction between their cultural references and mine becomes a point of connection rather than division.”
Territories will continue to shift, reflecting the inevitability of change and highlights that we are never defined by a single story or identity. Intimately, we all carry multiple stories within us — stories that more often than not, intersect with each other. For the radicant artist, the challenge is navigating the balance between being transient and establishing roots.
20 September, at the International Institute for Social History in Amsterdam: Doron Beuns will moderate a conversation between Baby Reni and Nazif Lopulissa on how family history influences art. Topics will include the impact of colonialism, migration, and globalisation on their work, the meaning of traditions and the creation of new traditions in art, and how non-Western elements shape their work. The discussion will be followed by a short tour of Nazif Lopulissa’s exhibition, on display until September 29th.
