Chinese Historical Society of America » Exhibits

Remnants

amy — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 23:16:57 +0000

Artists Respond to the Chinese American Experience

Opening April 14, 2012

The struggle and triumph of Chinese America is expressed and celebrated through story and myth, pieced together by contemporary voices that enable legacy to endure. This exhibition features unique examples of this expression with the presentation of site-specific works by selected artists. The works serve as responses to memory and record, as well as interpretations of historical narrative.

The artists are invited to mount their works in direct juxtaposition with the didactic history exhibition at the Chinese Historical Society of America Museum. A full range of artistic media will be presented, offering diverse fragments of expression and interpretation. The new works may include objects selected from the CHSA collection, presented on a new platform, with new perspective.

With this dynamic intervention of contemporary art onto formal history, the CHSA Museum hopes to offer its audience an enriched understanding of the Chinese American experience.

Check back here soon for more details about our new exhibition!

Sun Yat-sen: An American Legacy

amy — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 00:28:37 +0000

To commemorate the 100th anniversary of the founding of the modern republic of China, CHSA presents the exhibition Sun Yat-sen: An American Legacy. The exhibition tells the story of the “father of modern China” Dr. Sun Yat-sen and his travels in America as he rallied support to the cause of a free and modern China. The exhibit was organized by Connie Young Yu from her family’s collection of Sun Yat-sen memorabilia. Special programs include History Alive! Performances “Sun Yat-sen & The Three People’s Principles” by Artist-in-Residence Charlie Chin, and a brand-new documentary Dr. Sun at Liberty’s Door by Connie Young-Yu. On display now in the Phillip Choy Gallery.

“Finding Jake Lee: The Paintings at Kan’s”

Judy — Sun, 13 Jun 2010 21:45:51 +0000

In the early 1960s, restaurateur Johnny Kan commissioned a series of water color paintings by artist Jake Lee. For many years, these stunning paintings hung in the private Gum Shan (“Gold Mountain”) dining room of the landmark Kan’s Restaurant in San Francisco’s Chinatown.

Each Jake Lee painting showcases specific aspects and milestones in early Chinese American history, including scenes of San Francisco’s Chinatown, railroad-building in the Sierra Nevadas, Sonoma wine country, cigar & lantern factories, and the 1888 champion Chinese fire-hose team of Deadwood, South Dakota.

Come view first-hand these stunning & significant landscapes of our history!

News & Press

View the latest press coverage for Finding Jake Lee

Catalog for Finding Jake Lee

The official catalog for Finding Jake Lee is now available
at the CHSA Museum Store for $7.

This 32-page catalog features prints of all of the paintings in the show and historic photographs in full color. Also featured in the catalog are exclusive essays from Gordon H. Chang (Professor of History at Stanford University), Mark Dean Johnson (Professor of Art at San Francisco State University), Jerry Lee (nephew of artist Jake Lee), Sue Lee (Executive Director of CHSA), and Grace Young (award-winning author of The Wisdom of the Chinese Kitchen and Stir-Frying to the Sky’s Edge.

Read an excerpt from the catalog online here!
Jake Lee and Chinese American History by Gordon H. Chang

For more information about purchasing a catalog, please contact CHSA.

Detained at Liberty’s Door

Francis — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 21:41:57 +0000

Detained at Liberty’s Door traces the formation of the Angel Island Immigration Station and highlights the inspiring story of Mrs. Lee Yoke Suey, the wife of a native-born citizen who was detained for more than 15 months on Angel Island. Only an association with one of California’s most powerful & iconic families secured her freedom.

This traveling exhibit, developed by CHSA, has been displayed at the California History Center, De Anza College in 2011.

Remembering 1882: Fighting for Civil Rights in the Shadow of the Chinese Exclusion Act

amy — Mon, 08 Oct 2007 19:08:53 +0000

In 1882 Congress passed the nation’s first major immigration legislation — a law to prevent people of Chinese descent from entering the United States. The law would tear apart families, cut the nation’s Chinese American population in half, and remove the right to become citizens.

Remembering 1882 explores the historical debate around the Exclusion Act from its origins through its full repeal in 1968, the civil rights struggle of Chinese Americans and allies, and the historic importance of habeas corpus in the Chinese American community.

In 2009, the California Legislature passed a Bill that apologizes to Chinese Americans for the the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act and other unjust discriminatory laws which resulted in the persecution of Chinese living in California.

Online Exhibit:
CHSA Civil Rights Suite – Remembering 1882

Now available as a traveling exhibit

Drawn from photographs, newspaper commentaries, political cartoons, and other objects in CHSA’s collections, CHSA’s Remembering 1882 exhibit provides a flavor for the intrigue, passion and poignancy of this dramatic chapter in American history. Launched in San Francisco, the exhibit travels throughout the United States to civic institutions and community organizations.