Event Detail

Alliance & Collectivity: Retracing the Vibrant History of Asian American Artistic Communities in Interwar California

Tuesday, May 27, 2025 at 7:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.

Cost: Free with reservation

Sponsor: The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens

For more information call: 626-405-2100

Or click here: https://www.huntington.org/event/alliance-collectivity-retracing-vibrant-history-asian-american-artistic-communities-interwar

Art historian ShiPu Wang discusses how American artists of Asian descent in pre-World War II California made vital yet still-overlooked contributions to modernism, navigated exclusionary laws, built transcultural collectives, and organized exhibitions that redefined artistic belonging in 20th-century American art history. American artists of Asian descent working in California before World War II made diverse, innovative, and impactful contributions to American modernism—more than many might expect. In this lecture, art historian and curator ShiPu Wang draws from two decades of research to outline the rich yet largely understudied history of these artists, who navigated the challenges of the Exclusion Era (1885–1965), a time marked by anti-immigration and anti-Asian laws. Defying systemic barriers and xenophobic perceptions, they forged paths of self-representation, built transcultural collectives, and organized groundbreaking exhibitions that redefined artistic and cultural belonging. Some participated in landmark modernist showcases, while others created their own platforms, bringing together a wide range of voices and perspectives. Through meticulous research, Professor Wang brings these artists’ work, legacies, and influence to light—challenging and expanding our understanding of 20th-century American art history. This is the Hannah and Russell Kully Distinguished Fellow Lecture in American Art.