On April 26th, the Musuem of Chinese in America will launch two new exhibitions, America through a Chinese Lens and June 4, 1989: Media and Mobilization Beyond Tiananmen Square, on view through September 10th. The opening reception for both exhibitions will be held on Wednesday, April 25, at 6pm at the Museum.
America through a Chinese Lens
Tseng Kwong Chi (Grand Canyon, Arizona, 1987) © Estate of Tseng Kwong Chi
Featuring photographs and projects by:
Yan Deng
Wing Young Huie
Wayne Liu
Arthur Ou
Julie Quon
Ka-Man Tse
Tseng Kwong-Chi
Ann Woo
An Xiao
Amy Yao
Chien-An Yuan
Hai Zhang
Jiajia Zhang +
community photographs from MOCA’s collection
Organized by Curator and Director of Exhibitions Herb Tam, America through a Chinese Lens surveys more than 60 photographs by Chinese artists, documentary photographers, and non-professional enthusiasts living in the United States, Europe, and China. Drawing from MOCA’s extensive permanent collection of Chinese photography and the work of contemporary artists, the images depict American life in all of its beauty, contradictions, and realities from a uniquely Chinese perspective and span several generations: from historic photographs taken by newly arrived immigrants in the 1940s to artists working today.
The show will unite communities of diverse photographers, from those situated in MOCA’s surrounding Chinatown neighborhood to contemporary artists based around New York, across this country, and in Europe and China. These artists explore such archetypal themes as the American landscape, the inner-city and suburban experience of marginalized communities, and the dislocation and absurdities of living in a foreign country.
In a series of exceptional snapshots by non-professional photographers, family life, political realities, and historic moments are intimately captured, reflecting the spirit of a rapidly changing country. Coursing through many of the images is a pervasive sense of unease and disconnection from mainstream American life, though the photographs themselves may be viewed as an inspired attempt at cultural mediation.
The exhibition includes a social media project titled An Xiao’s Streethaiku in America: Over the course of the exhibition, new media artist and design strategist An Xiao will be photographing her travels throughout the west and southwest of America and posting them on MOCA’s tumblr page: chineseinamerica.tumblr.com.
June 4, 1989: Media and Mobilization Beyond Tiananmen Square
Tony Saich (Courtesy of the Chinese People’s Movement Collection, International Institute of Social History, Amsterdam)
Organized by Assistant Curator Ryan Lee Wong, June 4, 1989: Media and Mobilization Beyond Tiananmen Square draws upon MOCA’s extensive collection of Asian-American and Chinese-language periodicals to reconstruct a narrative of the American coverage and response to the 1989 protests and massacre at Tiananmen Square.
The periodicals on display –including rarely exhibited originals of AsianWeek, China Press, East West, World Journal, and Zhong Bao – document the development of a sister movement in America. Thousands of Asian-Americans throughout the country marched and rallied in solidarity with the Chinese protesters including a demonstration of over 20,000 people in New York’s Chinatown organized by the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association. A timeline of events, along with loaned archival photographs, network news broadcasts, and selections from Time, Newsweek, and The New York Times Magazine will offer historical context.
More than two decades later, the Arab Spring, anti-Kremlin protests in Russia, and Occupy Wall Street evoke images of the largest pro-democracy demonstrations in Chinese history. Amidst this renaissance of popular protest, June 4, 1989: Media and Mobilization Beyond Tiananmen Square offers a chance to reflect critically on the inseparable roles of protester, journalist, and spectator at home. ‘)}
