Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by children's author and illustrator Grace Lin won a Newbery Honor award this past Monday (photos and description of her receiving "the call" found at her blog).
Moon now joins the likes of Charlotte's Web and Beverly Cleary's Ramona books in the pantheon of round silver-stickered classics. That'll do, Moon. That'll do.
Continue reading "Grace Lin's 'Moon' Wins Newbery Honor"
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It's that time of year again for present-hunting -- and Hyphen's here to help with our annual gift guides. For the next several days, we'll post a differently-themed guide.
For our first installment, we asked our friend Angie Myung of Poketo -- makers of limited edition art products, accessories, apparel and decor -- for her picks.
Image by Poketo.
Continue reading "Hyphen Holiday Gift Guide: Everyday Art"
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Continue reading "Hyphen Lynks: The Gratitude Edition"
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This past weekend saw the closing of Philip Kan Gotanda's #5 Angry Red Drum at San Francisco's Thick House. So now that we can't spoil any surprises, Hyphen is pleased to offer this exclusive interview with Phillip himself, as promised. When Philip and I spoke, he was sitting in a car with his dog, and I was at home, nursing a fever with lemons and hot water. Which is only to say, that we got down to the meaty stuff pretty quickly.
I asked him not only about this latest play, but also about his experience of the play within the canon of Asian American theater. Did he feel that his play added to that tradition if it did not explicitly address "traditional" Asian American themes? Phillip addressed my questions with incredible candor, I felt. And the result is, yes, some secrets to a dense piece of theater, but also something Hyphen readers crave -- insight into how our leaders interact with the ever-evolving term "Asian American."
Keep reading for the interview below.
Continue reading "Philip Kan Gotanda on '#5 Angry Red Drum,' AsAm Theater, and Writing Identity"
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Hyphen's own Luke Patterson -- that's Mr. Hyphen ('08), to you -- gets graffiti artist Estria talking.
Here's Estria on hard work: "I'm a big advocate for second and third place, folks, cuz they're gonna try real hard to become the first place."
On art: "It's true revolution where it's coming from the heart. As opposed to coming from a place of anger at the way things are, you're coming from a place of love where you want things to be better for people. I think artists, we have a role in that, we can be the voice for our people."
On social activism and graffiti: "So it's not like 'show up and paint your name.' We're trying to shift the social consciousness in graffiti culture across the next 10 to 20 years and making people, instead of 'Me Me Me, my name my name my name,' it's about 'what am I speaking on?'"
Continue reading "Graf Artist Estria Talks with Hyphen"
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Readers will remember Joe from his illustration of competitive eater Takeru Kobayashi pelted with flying hot dogs in the Lazy Susan section of issue 13. Rob's work graced our pages in the same issue with his comic entitled "Animal Husbandry" -- a love story between a man and a dolphin-lady-thing.
The interview was conducted by David Choe, friend and grafitti artist. David's experience in a Japanese prison was written about in issue 4 of Hyphen. You can read his article here. David also curated Joe and Rob's show.
The issue is on newsstands now and the show runs until the end of this month.
-- by Erica Jones, Hyphen Creative Director
Continue reading "Joe To, Rob Sato, Goh Nakamura and The Invisible Cities"
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Just got tipped to an excellent new intervention critiquing the San Francisco Asian Art Museum's latest orientalist extravaganza, Lords of the Samurai. My anonymous source sent me the link to Lord, it's the Samurai!, a brilliant goof on this year's summer blockbuster which replicates the show's official website with a twist -- it offers a detailed, pointed, and well-researched deconstruction of the problematic exhibition. The faux-site points out the less-than-savory aspects of samurai culture that the Asian Art Museum conveniently glosses over, including the militarism, slavery, pederasty and misogyny inherent in the "code of the warrior."Continue reading "That's Not My Name: Lord, It's The Samurai! Intervention"
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As Hyphen's new director of photography, I'll be working to bring
you some great visuals -- showcasing work from emerging and established
photographers in our print magazine. But I'll also be introducing you to
photo-related bits of interest through the blog. In my mind there is no better or more
elegant way to communicate a story than through photography. I'm looking forward to sharing talented photographers and the stories they capture with you.I was really struck by Sebastian Kim's portraits of musicians featured in T Magazine, the style magazine of the New York Times. He photographed his series Rock Candy at this year's Coachella music festival, getting the likes of both emerging talents (Rye Rye) and pop icons (Madonna) to pose for him. There is such varied but beautiful mood and intensity to these photos.
Continue reading "Photographer Sebastian Kim's Coachella Portraits: Rock Candy"
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I left Zine Fest without all the cash that had been in my wallet. So much for trying to save money in a down economy. There was too much stuff I wanted to buy.
Continue reading "San Francisco Zine Fest Roundup"
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Nerd dance talk here: his technique is flawless. I'm so bummed that I won't be seeing him compete due to contractual obligations with Miami City Ballet (yes he's a professional ballet dancer), but way to represent Alex!
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Sometimes, living on a student's shoestring budget can reap big benefits, by teaching you how to think big by using less.I had my Hyphen Takeout editor's cap firmly on while trolling New York's swank International Contemporary Furniture Fair (ICFF) last week for a good story. Specifically, I was looking for the kind of creative work we like to show off in our magazine -- the innovative, socially-conscious and often collaborative projects that can spark a conversation and add more value to a room than just sheer aesthetic wow.
I found it.
Continue reading "Students Rise to the Top of 2009 International Contemporary Furniture Fair"
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This pioneering San Franciscan filed a school desegregation lawsuit 70 years before Brown v. Board of Education. She was also an accomplished painter, photographer, and telegrapher.
Continue reading "Women's History Month Profile: Mary Tape"
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Co-presenting with the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival, LOCUS returns with the 2nd Annual Do-It-Yourself Music Video Premiere Night. Not quite sure what that means? Well, not long ago LOCUS played matchmaker with APA filmmakers and musicians and, after pairing them with one another, challenged each group to make a music video in two months with little to no budget. Not only could you be among the first to view the results this Friday, you will also get to see the musicians perform live! This is an event that would do Wrigley's Doublemint gum slogan proud, because it would be double the pleasure and double the fun.
So don't miss it! You can view last year's videos and vote for your favorite video from this year's batch at the CAAM website. The video with the most votes will win a spot in the coming San Francisco International Asian American Festival! Event info follows, and you can also visit our calender posting or the LOCUS website for more details.
Friday, February 20
8-11 pm (doors open at 7pm)
Root Division
3175 17th Street @ S. Van Ness
Admission: $10 suggested donation
All ages.
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The following is directly quoted from Kundiman's announcement. Please don't ask us for more information; we don't have any! Just go to the links below and ask them.
Continue reading "Calling All Poets: Kundiman Retreat"
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Just learned of F.O.B. II: Art Speaks [Nghe Thuat Len Tieng], an art exhibit in Southern California, that Claire mentioned in a previous post. The Vietnamese American Arts & Letters Assn created this provocative art exhibit in Santa Ana but this weekend, hundreds of anti-communists protested the exhibit, and one of the pieces was defaced with red paint.
The show only had a one-week run, until the building's owner bowed to the protestors' pressure and shut it down.
The Los Angeles Times had a nice preview story about the exhibit, including descriptions and photographs of some of the artwork. The curators are mostly 1.5 generation Vietnamese Americans -- many professors, it seems -- who wanted to spark discussion about politics and art within their community. Pieces included images of the flag of Vietnam and other symbols of Vietnam -- what anti-communists would label as symbols of communism -- but also included artwork that was banned in Vietnam. The piece of artwork that was most controversial, it seems, was one by Brian Doan, with a young woman wearing a red tank top with a yellow star, sitting next to a bust of Ho Chi Minh and a cell phone.
Continue reading "Changing Little Saigon Through Art?"
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There is a place, a place where the policies of two decades ago bump up against the politics of next century, where a first lady's fashion choice is as important as the lives of 400 Palestinian children, where the Chinese are still Japanese in the popular imagination, where real bleeding heart lib'rals are preparing to get up and party at 7:30 of a Tuesday morn. This place is called ... Da Twilight Zone!
Dew dew dew dew ... dew dew dew dew ... dew dew dew dew ... dew dew dew dew ...
Continue reading "Da Twilight Zone: The Week Before 'Bama Edition"
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Grace Cho, author of Haunting the Korean Diaspora: Shame, Secrecy and the Forgotten War, will be presenting her book, followed by a community discussion, this Saturday at the Wing Luke Asian Museum in Seattle. Her book is an analysis of US neocolonialism, militarized prostitution, and transgenerational trauma, examining the history between Korean women and American servicemen through sex work and marriage. Since the Korean War, over a million women have acted as sex workers for US soldiers, and over 100,000 married GIs and emigrated to America. Haunting the Korean Diaspora also explores the repressed history of violence and consequences of such sexual relationships for Koreans and Korean Americans in both the private realm and public discourse. The discussion will also include topics of adoption, memory, and occupation.
Grace Cho is also a contributing performance artist to the Wing Luke Museum's current exhibit "Still Present Pasts: Korean Americans and the Forgotten War." I recently saw the exhibit and it's definitely worth checking out, as a powerful collection of oral and visual accounts from survivors and their families. Both the book discussion and exhibition are included as part of Wing Luke's free third Saturdays programming.
Saturday January 17th
5:30 to 7:30pm
Free!
Wing Luke Asian Museum
719 South King Street (Chinatown-International District)
Seattle, WA
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Heads up for Back to the Homeland, an engaging (and free!) community event in Seattle next Tuesday. Special guests Refugee Nation will preview a theater project based on the oral histories of Laotian refugees and their descendants. Student performances, spoken word, and a film screening will also be featured.
Legacies of War, one of the sponsoring organizations, does incredible work using art, community organizing and dialogue to raise awareness about the history of bombings in Laos. They provide a space to heal the wounds of war and advocate for the removal of unexploded bombs. From 1964 to 1973, Laos was the most heavily bombed country in the world, with the United States dropping over two million tons. Check out Legacies' online journal for a compelling account of their recent trip to meet with Laotian villagers affected by cluster bombs and build partnerships with NGOs and government.
Continue reading "Back to the Homeland: Refugee Nation and Legacies of War"
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The good news is that, by pretending to be a conscious aZn who only cares about kultcher, you can save money on gifts, AND out-virtue all your friends! Here's how!
Continue reading "Claire's aZn KulTchuR Holiday Gift Guide"
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For our New York readers: on December 8th, playwright David Henry Hwang will be presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award, as part of the 11th Annual Asian American Literary Awards. Hwang will be reunited with actor B.D. Wong ("Law and Order") for a special reading and conversation. This year marks the 20th anniversary of Hwang's influential and Tony Award-winning "M.Butterfly", in which B.D. Wong made his Broadway debut and also won a Tony."M.Butterfly" seems to be required reading in every college AsianAm and ethnic lit course. Here's your chance to witness two groundbreakers come together again, rub elbows and carouse at the VIP reception, and then brag to all your poorly-read, uncouth friends.
Continue reading "Asian American Literary Awards: David Henry Hwang and B.D. Wong"
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Another MATCHA season came and is going, going, going to be gone!
Come to the Asian Art Museum tonight from 5 to 9pm and partake in 2008's last MATCHA. The theme's Afghanistan and the event schedule goes a little like this:
5-9 pm: Afghan food tastings
5-9 pm: Make your own jewelry
6:30-7:30 pm: The Afghan Heritage of Peace and Religious Tolerance: Celebrating one thousand years of Sufi literature. Scholar Robert Abdul Hayy Darr presents readings from the poetry of Hakim Sana'i, Abdullah Ansari, Jalaluddin Rumi, Rabia Balkhi, Khalilullah Khalili, and other great Sufis of Afghanistan. This is part of the Society for Asian Art First Thursday Lecture Series.
7:30 pm: Performance by Ballet Afsaneh
Time TBD: Docent conversations in the special exhibition Afghanistan: Hidden Treasures from the National Museum, Kabul
Ongoing: Free raffle drawing
MATCHA is FREE with museum admission and otherwise it's only $5 after 5pm!
*The peeps of Hyphen will also be tabling at the event so don't be a stranger! Stop by, loiter around and check out our latest issue and merchandise.
Follow this link to get more information on tonight's MATCHA.
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Tabla solos and duets by four of the bay area's emerging tabla talents. www.sangaticenter.org 3049 22nd Street SF CA 94110
Continue reading "T A B L A C E N T R I C @ Sangati Center SF - November 2nd, 2008"
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About a month ago, Ruby sent me the manuscript of the book including all the poetry and other writings (mostly poetry) included in Miss Universe, along with a very nice note written in neat, cursive handwriting. I mention this fact because it seems people don't really take the time to write nice handwritten notes these days, and perhaps I am easily impressed by neat cursive handwriting. Anyway, I read through the whole thing in one sitting, though there's lots of food for thought and would be a good read many times.
Though I have only met her briefly, it's pretty clear that she is very motivated and passionate about her work. I particularly like her poems about being a young woman of color living in an urban area. She also has a (in?)famous poem about relations between her and a black man, which you can view for yourself on YouTube here.
Continue reading "Ruby Veridiano-Ching's Miss Universe"
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Continue reading "New Book "Asian American Art""
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The 10th person to email me at lisalee(at)hyphenmagazine.com with the correct answer to "when was KSW founded" will win big. In your email, please also let me know what performance you'd like to attend.
Continue reading "Kearny Street Workshop Presents APAture 2008 & Win Free Tickets"
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MATCHA: Tea & Spice
Asian Art Museum
Thursday, September 4
5 to 9 pm
FREE with museum admission ($5 after 5 pm)
Continue reading "MATCHA : Tea & Spice : Thursday, September 4th"
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If you're a San Francisco Bay Area artist with talent, vision, and passion--or have friends who fit the description--now is the chance to be immortalized as the permanent exterior of the International Hotel (I-Hotel). You read right; this is for keeps!
Artists are encouraged to submit an image for this public art project, which is funded by the San Francisco Arts Commission and celebrates the spirit of the I-Hotel.
The theme for this project should send a message about the importance of the I-Hotel, which has dedicated itself to preserve the Manila neighborhood and low-cost housing. The building has a rich history of struggle and victory, and represents a community of diverse people working together to preserve their home. The art piece selected will engage viewers for its artistic merit and educational value.
The artwork must be able to withstand outdoor exposure, and the scale of the piece should be appropriate for the site. The committee has no preconceptions as to style, specific material, or color--so dig deep and have fun!
A few key facts about the application process:
- You may submit up to 10 images of past work, which can be scanned drawings or composite images. Digital submissions on CD/DVD or flash drive are preferred. Printed 8 by 10-inch photos will also be accepted. Clearly label all items. Original work will not be accepted, and all applications will become the property of the selection committee.
- Artist's biography listing artistic experience and community affiliations are limited to 3,000 characters.
- Provide three professional references that can speak about your artistic ability.
- Once applications are submitted and reviewed, up to five finalists will be chosen for interviews and will be asked to provide a concept/proposal for the design of the artwork. Each finalist will receive a nominal stipend of $250 to compensate for his/her time and work.
- Deadline is September 12, 2008 at 5:00 pm
Send applications or forward questions to:
Tan Chow, Senior Organizer, Chinatown Community Development Center
1525 Grant Street
San Francisco, California 94133
415.984.1498
tchow@chinatowndc.org
For more information about the history of the I-Hotel, visit this link: http://www.manilatown.org/ourpast.htm
Posted by Shay at 3:21 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)
Interested in honing your creative writing skills and you live in L.A.? Asian American Poetry and Writing (AAPW), a newish group started by Ky-Phong Paul Tran, is hosting writing workshops at the Japanese American National Museum near downtown Los Angeles this fall. The classes sound pretty cool--introduction to fiction, introduction to poetry, memoir/personal writing, and screenwriting. The instructors are Noel Alumit, Neil Aitken, Naomi Hirahara and Koji Steven Sakai. Sounds like a nice line up. To see a full list of class descriptions, go here.
The group also has original articles. A couple of new ones include an interview with Kawita Kandpal, author of "Folding a River," by Hyphen contributor Ching-In Chen. Vanessa Hua, formerly of the San Francisco Chronicle, also has a piece on Berkeley-based indie publisher Kaya Press. Check out AAPW here!
This is, in Ky-Phong's words, a totally "DIY" (do-it-yourself) operation so spread the love to folks you know in the Los Angeles area who might be interested!
Posted by Momo at 2:32 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
Gallery1988 is presenting Paper Pushers, a show featuring the work of a multitude of artists and local Bay Area talent. The opening reception and show will start on August 15th and run until September 6th.
Some of the artists include: Lawrence Yang, whose work is described as "graffiti art and traditional Chinese painting," Juri Ueda, who received a BFA in Traditional Illustration from the Academy of Art University in San Francisco, and Lani Imre, a Canadian artist who is currently located in the Bay Area.
Opening Reception:
Friday, August 15th 7-10 PM
Gallery1988 SF
1173 Sutter St. (at Polk)
San Francisco, CA 94109
Check out the flyer here: http://www.suckatlife.com/images/paperPushersFlyer.jpg
Lawrence Yang: http://www.suckatlife.com
Juri Ueda: http://www.juriueda.com/
Posted by Shay at 8:34 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
Bay Area Now 5, a triennial exhibition of Bay Area art (and possibly the most important art show in San Francisco this year), is up now at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. One of the featured artists is Ala Ebtekar, whose work we showcased in issue 11. Ebtekar paints on top of found prayer manuscripts in the style of Iranian miniatures, to explore the crossings of spirituality and war.
Continue reading "Bay Area Now & Goh Nakamura in NY"
Posted by Melissa at 3:03 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
I met up with Hyphen's publisher Lisa Lee for some of the events going on at the AA International Film Festival in Manhattan. For those who haven't been to the Asia Society building, it is this huge, futuristic, stylish building in Manhattan's Upper East Side (70th at Park) that hosts all sorts of events throughout the year. Lisa has been at the festival since the start and been to many screenings. We went to the opening night afterparty at Forbidden City bar, then I joined her for films one day, and also a round table discussion the next day, as well as other random activities.The films we saw were 'Heart Squared' and 'Option 3'. 'Heart Squared' was a nice short that was surreal, eccentric, and very stylish, and since there's no easy way to explain the film, I won't even try. 'Option 3' was a full length movie directed by Richard Wong, who was there for the screening and gave a brief talk at the beginning. Unfortunately, I couldn't sit through the entire thing, and though I kept waiting for it to get better, I ended up leaving midway. It wasn't bad per se; I just didn't personally enjoy it very much.
The next day was a very interesting panel discussion on Asian and Asian American aesthetics, with David Henry Hwang (playwright, M. Butterfly), Mary Ping (fashion designer), Billie Tsien (architect), Wayne Wang (filmmaker, The Joy Luck Club), and Dennis Lim (writer, editor) on stage.
Continue reading "My Weekend at the Asian American International Film Festival"
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Hollywood Chinese, by award-winning documentary filmmaker Arthur Dong, opens in the Los Angeles area and New York City theaters today. Go check it out. We posted about it when it opened in the San Francisco Bay Area. I also interviewed Arthur Dong for the local paper, the Oakland Tribune.
It's great to see documentaries take over the big screen. I read in a recent edition of the Films Arts magazine that documentaries have gained more mainstream appeal since films like "Fahrenheit 9/11," "Supersize Me" and "An Inconvenient Truth" came out.
Still, they are a labor of love -- most documentary filmmakers are not out to make big Hollywood bucks. So please let's continue this trend of supporting documentaries on the big screen. An Asian American one, at that! I think you'll enjoy the film.
The film plays at the following theaters:
Continue reading ""Hollywood Chinese" in LA and NYC"
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Continue reading "Everybody Loves the JabbaWockeeZ"
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Last week, I serendipitously ended up at the opening of Sorry at the (totally hot) Frey Norris Gallery in San Francisco and was happily surprised to find the works of my old friend Christine Wong-Yap (who is also in a show at Kearny Street Workshop) and Jennifer Wofford (whom Claire Light profiles in our upcoming Spaces Issue, which will hit the stands next month!).
Mailinvoice...& So If I Was You By Christine Wong-Yap
"Point of Departure" and "Nurse" by Wofford and text-based works and "Inventions" by Wong Yap will line the gallery's walls and Wong Yap's "Presents" will populate the center of the gallery. Both series of Wofford's work explore and re-interpret an imaginative comic-like narrative centered on Filipina nurses and immigration histories. Wong Yap takes wry aim at blind spots in printed language, conveying optimism and pessimism, using distorted typography and the failures and half truths of illegible words, as well as sculptural stacks of "empty" gifts.
Otherwise, the gallery has a great collection of artists in their stable and focus especially on contemporary art from the San Francisco Bay Area and classic surrealism, especially women artists. Check out their artists here. And, get off your couch, go see the show!
Posted by Neela at 1:30 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
Imogen Cunningham portrait of Ruth Asawa, "Ruth Holding a Form-Within-Form Sculpture" (1952)
After your Friday night's carousing, shake off your hangover and go see some quality art!
Continue reading "Art Exhibitions & Events This Weekend - LA and SF: Ruth Asawa and Witness to War"
Posted by Rebecca at 6:02 PM | Comments (0)
Let it be known that I have a weakness for excellent handwriting. Unfortunately, mine sucks.
A careful script is in a way superfluous in its effort, inefficient in its use of time with respect to fulfilling the basic goals of communication. But this is precisely what I enjoy, this excess in the desire to please.
Continue reading "The Sound of Silence"
Posted by Rebecca at 10:49 PM | Comments (0)
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