The Da Vinci Art Alliance will unveil a new exhibition remembering loved ones while celebrating the Mid-Autumn Festival.
“Moon Gazing: A Call to Ancestors” is a group exhibition designed to bring ancestral heritage into conversation with the present.
The exhibition can be viewed from Sept. 5-22 in the Gallery 2 at the Da Vinci Art Alliance at 704 Catharine St. An opening reception will be held Sept. 7 from 4-7 p.m. and a closing reception and artist talk will take place Sept. 22 from noon-2 p.m.
Romana Lee-Akiyama curated the exhibition with the inspiration of her late father Chen Lok Lee, who was a painter, printmaker and professor. It explores 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.
“Moon Gazing: A Call to Ancestors” will feature work by nine artists who were tasked with responding to the legacy and work of Lee, whose selected works are the centerpieces for the exhibit.
“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,” Lee-Akiyama said. “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.”
Visual works, soundscapes and stories will accompany the artwork with themes of ancestry, identity, spiritual longing and impermanence. It will feature a reading from award-winning poet Michelle Myers’ middle-grade debut novel “Talk Me a Story About Moon Rabbit” and accompanying hands-on story-writing and culturally influenced crafting workshop. Myers’ “Honor Your Roots” workshop for tweens and young teens will take place Sept. 14 from 3:30-5 p.m.
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