National Center for the Preservation of Democracy at JANM

Meet the 2022 NCPD@JANM Fellowship Artists Audrey Chan and Jason Chu

In September 2021, the National Center for the Preservation of Democracy at the Japanese American National Museum (NCPD@JANM) and Asian Americans Advancing Justice – Los Angeles (Advancing Justice-LA) invited artists to apply for the Artists At Work (AAW) initiative

Born out of the coronavirus pandemic and inspired by the Works Progress Administration, the AAW initiative employs artists in U.S. cities and regions to create original public-facing art and connect them to cultural institutions. The initiative also ties the artists and cultural institutions to social justice, economic, health, housing, and immigration issues in their local communities.

In December 2021, NCPD@JANM and Advancing Justice-LA selected Audrey Chan and Jason Chu as the 2022 recipients of this initiative. Chan is an illustrator and educator. Chu is a rapper and spoken word poet. Together they will create new artwork focusing on anti-Asian hate and racism.

Chan’s work blends visual and public art with film and research to challenge dominant historical narratives. Growing up in Oak Park, Illinois, she identified as an artist from a young age. 

“My art is about picturing the possibilities of what the world could look and feel like if the lived experiences, desires, and struggles of historically marginalized communities were centered in the stories of America’s past, present, and future,” said Chan.

A Delaware native, Chu’s music and poetry stem from exposure to hip hop at an early age. 

“I grew up with hip hop. It’s what made me Asian American. The community, the culture, the racial consciousness. I was surrounded by people who were using this art to hold a heritage. It’s a venue for having conversations that I wanted to have and to hear,” Chu said. 

“My art is about picturing the possibilities of what the world could look and feel like if the lived experiences, desires, and struggles of historically marginalized communities were centered in the stories of America’s past, present, and future.”

Audrey Chan

Chu earned his bachelor’s in Philosophy at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. He earned his master’s from Fuller’s Center for Asian American Theology and Ministry in Pasadena, California. His music and poetry are influenced by the work of Ms. Lauryn Hill, Wu-Tang Clan, Lupe Fiasco, and Kanye West. His three biggest influences are Kendrick Lamar, Bono, and Ai Wei Wei. 

“All of them are speaking of hope and healing in a broken world. They show what art can be for people,” he said.

Chan’s art is inspired by the work of Maya Lin, Adrian Piper, and Kerry James Marshall and her own family history. Chan earned her bachelor’s in Studio Art and Political Science at Swarthmore College in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania. She earned her master’s from the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) in Valencia, California. As she developed her craft, her work also became inspired by political and social issues of the early 2000s. 

“In the year prior [to graduate school], I had worked on a grassroots campaign to persuade voters in swing districts of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to vote for John Kerry during the 2004 presidential election. The invasion of Iraq was underway and I wanted to understand if and how art could be a political medium to mobilize for social justice and to give voice to frustration with the status quo.”

At CalArts, she connected with artists who were a part of the Feminist Art Movement through a campus-wide class project on the legacy of the university’s Feminist Art Program.

“I appreciated that Southern California was a place where artists could be unabashedly political, conceptual, and experimental,” she said.

When Chu moved to Los Angeles ten years ago, he sought a very specific movement.

“I moved here to Los Angeles to identify as an Asian American rapper and poet. I was seeking out a pan-ethnic community, and that’s a strength of the West Coast. The strength of the East Coast is that there is a strong understanding of racialization. Not only in urban areas, but in small-town America too. I like to say that Asian America means all Asian Americans,” he said.

Chu was inspired to apply to this initiative after a friend tagged him on JANM’s Instagram post. 

“I grew up with hip hop. It’s what made me Asian American. The community, the culture, the racial consciousness. I was surrounded by people who were using this art to hold a heritage.”

Jason Chu

“My friend, a Cuban American choreographer, tagged me and said ‘Jason this sounds like you.’ This fellowship embodies everything I strive to do because it builds a communal consciousness.”

For Chan, there were many different aspects of the initiative that spoke to her.

“The AAW initiative was an opportunity to partner with NCPD@JANM and Advancing Justice-LA, two inspiring organizations that have been on the frontlines of defending democracy and centering the needs and cultural specificities of AAPI communities. By working together, we’re finding ways to merge art and advocacy to move the needle forward in representing the diversity of AAPI communities and building the solidarities that are essential to survive and thrive in the face of racist hatred and hostility. I also deeply appreciate that the fellowship recognizes art as a form of essential cultural labor and gives new life to the legacy of the Works Progress Administration,” she said.

Chan and Chu plan to create a new artwork that engages multiple generations, represents Southern California Asian American and Pacific Islander communities, and stands alongside other communities fighting against injustice, hate, and violence. 

“We’re working on building a collective visual and textual vocabulary for this moment that can be translated into multiple languages and that can be activated through installations, events, and public participation. By making the project bilingual, we hope to provide another resource for intergenerational communication, but also to serve as a reminder that there is so much to learn about and from each other,” said Chan.

Fighting For Democracy: Who is the "We" in "We, the People"?

“Fighting for Democracy” travels to Charlotte, NC

The traveling exhibition, Fighting For Democracy: Who is the “We” in “We, the People”? opens at the Levine Museum of the New South in Charlotte, North Carolina this Saturday!

Fighting For Democracy: Who is the "We" in "We, the People"?The Levine will be the 10th site where we have travelled this exhibition that presents the diverse perspectives of seven individuals whose lives and communities were forever changed by World War II.

The exhibition will be on display from January 19 through July 14, 2013. Go check it out this Sunday at the Levine Museum’s annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Celebration 2013. Free admission, activities, & performances.

For more info about the MLK Celebration >>

 

If you are in the Charlotte area, or have friends & family who are, let them know about the exhibition!

Levine Museum of the New South
200 E. Seventh Street
Charlotte, NC 28202

For more information about the Charlotte presentation, contact 704.333.1887, or visit museumofthenewsouth.org.

For more information about the Fighting for Democracy exhibition >>

 

Fighting For Democracy: Who is the "We" in "We, the People"?

Fighting For Democracy travels to Neillsville, WI

Our Fighting for Democracy: Who is the “We” in “We, the People”? exhibition is traveling next to the Highground Veterans Memorial Park in Neillsville, WI from November 1 through December 31, 2012.

Fighting For Democracy: Who is the "We" in "We, the People"?

The exhibition presents the diverse perspectives of seven ordinary citizens whose lives and communities were forever changed by World War II. It asks visitors to think critically about freedom, history, and, ultimately, the ongoing struggle to live democratically in a diverse America.

The Highground is the 9th venue for this traveling exhibition. The mission of The Highground is to honor Veterans and their families and to educate about the cost of things—the human cost. The Highground is a Veterans Memorial Park that pays tribute to the Dead, and honors the Survivors, their service, and their sacrifices. It also pays tribute to the people who supported them when they were away and upon their return.

Highground Veterans Memorial Park
W7031 Ridge Road
Neillsville, WI 54456

For more information about this presentation, contact 715.743.4224, or visit thehighground.org.

For more information about the exhibition and a listing of other venues, to explore an online version, or to download the accompanying Educator’s Resource Guide, visit ncdemocracy.org.

Fighting for Democracy is presented by the Highground Veterans Memorial Park in partnership with the National Center for the Preservation of Democracy, an educational program of the Japanese American National Museum, to advance the understanding of, and commitment to, American democratic ideals. The Los Angeles exhibition and traveling version are funded in part by the U.S. Army Center of Military History. The traveling exhibition ten-city tour has been made possible through the generous support of The Boeing Company.

Fighting for Democracy is in Michigan!

Whew!  I can’t believe it’s already been a week since I was in Michigan celebrating the opening of our exhibition Fighting for Democracy: Who is the “We” in “We the People?” at the Arab American National Museum Not only did the Great Lakes State welcome me with surprisingly warm weather (a very important detail for this Southern Californian) but, the warm welcome and generous hospitality from the fantastic staff at the AANM made it a great trip. 

It’s always interesting to see this exhibit installed in the various cities to which it’s traveled.  Whether it is displayed in Philadelphia where the Constitution was signed, steps away from the actual Constitution on the National Mall, or in Hawai‘i where we joined Domingo Los Baños (one of the individuals featured in the exhibit) in his home state, each place adds different meaning and significance to the exhibit.  The Arab American National Museum is the 8th stop on Fighting for Democracy’s tour and it is an institution that we, at JANM feel a special connection with.  Not only do we share the commonality of being culturally specific museums that promote the appreciation of our country’s diversity; but, we also have common histories and stories that are particularly important to share as we consider parallels between the Japanese American World War II experience and the treatment of Arab Americans following the events of September 11, 2001.

What is great about Fighting for Democracy traveling to AANM right now is that is goes along so well with their current exhibition Patriots & Peacemakers: Arab Americans in Service to our Country.  Linking the past to the present, both exhibitions focus on individual personal stories as a way to think about broader stories and the bigger picture.  I think that’s a great way to make meaning.        

Many thanks to the wonderful people at the Arab American National Museum for being so welcoming and for working so hard to get the exhibition up.  If you’re in the area, be sure to go see our friends in Dearborn.  It is a great museum and definitely worth a stop!

Fighting for Democracy exhibition’s last days in Philadelphia

Alright east coast friends, this weekend is your last chance to go take a look at our traveling exhibition Fighting for Democracy: Who is the “We” in “We the People?” in Philadelphia before it closes January 16th at the wonderful National Constitution Center.  It’s been exciting to know that these stories have been shared with the great people in the city of brotherly love. If you haven’t seen it yet, you’ll want to head on over soon!

Now it’s time to hit the road again.  Next stop: The Arab American National Museum.  I’m getting my winter coat ready as we take the exhibition to Dearborn, Michigan! Fighting for Democracy opens there on February 2nd so if you’re in the area, we expect to see you there!