MOON GAZING: A CALL TO ANCEESTORS
This September, millions of people around the world will celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival by gathering with family, eating sweet treats such as moon cakes, and remembering loved ones. ‘Moon Gazing: A Call to Ancestors,’ is a group exhibition designed to bring ancestral heritage into conversation with the present. Inspired by the work of the late painter, printmaker, and professor Chen Lok Lee (1927 – 2020), Romana Lee-Akiyama, Lee’s daughter, curated this exhibition to explore contemporary expressions of identity for Asian and Asian American artists connected to Philadelphia, as well as the tensions that underrepresented and systemically excluded artists with hyphenated identities face.
Lee-Akiyama is the Michelle Angela Ortiz fellow at the Da Vinci Art Alliance and her exhibition marks a year of work through the program. “I’m thrilled to be partnering with such a diverse and immensely talented group of artists, who each have a powerful voice in expressing their Asian/Asian American identity through their work. My father is no longer here to nurture all of our talent, but he’s imparted his spirit on me to keep inspiring the next generation of artists.” said Lee-Akiyama, a global cross-sector leader at the intersection of social change, equity, community well-being, and the arts and culture.
“Moon Gazing” features works by Chenlin Cai, Hanzi, Mel Hsu, Chen Lok Lee, Gina Kim, Michelle Myers, Winnie Sidhartha, Hanalee Akiyama, Joon Thomas and Kumaji “Harry” Nakatsugawa.
- On view: September 5 – September 22 in Gallery 2 at Da Vinci Art Alliance (704 Catharine St.)
- Opening Reception: Saturday, September 7 from 4-7 pm
- Honor Your Roots: an engaging workshop for tweens and young teens in partnership with award-winning poet and author, Michelle Myers, Saturday, September 14 from 3:30-5 pm
- Closing Reception and Artist Talk: Sunday, September 22 from 12-2pm
Da Vinci Art Alliance (DVAA) is an intergenerational community space and art gallery with the core mission of Building Community Through Art. We foster an artist membership that both showcases individual voices and encourages collective collaboration, providing monthly exhibitions and programming, all at no cost to visitors. We are open Thursdays – Sundays from 11am-6pm.
Contact: Veronica Cianfrano (she/her), Gallery Director, veronica@davinciartalliance.org
FORMATION
EXCLUDED/INCLUSION
The Work of Chen Lok Lee
September 15, 2022 through May 2023
Opening Reception Thursday, September 15, 5-7 PM
The Art Lounge at the Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts
University of Pennsylvania
3680 Walnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104
The 18 prints, watercolors and lithographs in Excluded/Inclusion: The Work of Chen Lok Lee show the journey of his life and art on three continents and demonstrate the broad range of his skillset and artistic style. It is a demonstration of work that shows the human spirit of determination, personal agency and the power of choice to survive. Visit the exhibit website at:
Excluded/Inclusion: The Work of Chen Lok Lee
Building Bridges,
Breaking Barriers
an art exhibit featuring work by
Chen Lok Lee
ON VIEW THROUGH SEPTEMBER 8, 2022
Crane Community Center
1001 Vine Street
Philadelphia, PA 19107
