Current Exhibitions
America through a Chinese Lens
April 26 – September 10, 2012
America through a Chinese Lens surveys photography of American life as shot by contemporary Chinese and Chinese American artists, documentary photographers and non-professionals, identifying the specific ways in which the Chinese have used the camera to see this country - its beauty, contradictions, and realities. The exhibition spans many generations of photographers: contemporary artists who use the medium as well as snapshots taken by new immigrants from the 1950s to today which have been selected from MOCA’s permanent collection. During the run of the show, new media artist and design strategist An Xiao will be shooting and posting photographs regularly as she travels throughout the west and southwest, offering a live visual essay about her America on our tumblr page: chineseinamerica.tumblr.com.
June 4, 1989: Media and Mobilization Beyond Tiananmen Square
April 26 – September 10, 2012
June 4, 1989: Media and Mobilization Beyond Tiananmen Square draws from MOCA’s extensive collection of Asian-American and Chinese-language periodicals to reconstruct a narrative of the coverage of and response to the Tiananmen Square protests and massacre of 1989. These periodicals tell the story of the sister movement sparked in America: thousands, mainly young Asian-Americans, marched and rallied in cities across the country in solidarity with the Chinese protesters. The crackdown of June 4 politically galvanized the Chinese-American community, and the protests escalated. Amidst the current renaissance of popular protest, June 4, 1989: Media and Mobilization Beyond Tiananmen Square offers a chance to reflect critically on the inseparable roles of protester, journalist, and spectator at home.
With a Single Step: Stories in the Making of America
With a Single Step: Stories in the Making of America, MOCA’s new core exhibit, will bring to life the Museum’s unique historical content and birth a compelling art work by fusing itself with the architectural heart of its new home designed by Maya Lin on Centre Street. Metaphorically and literally, this “heart” will ground visitors, and be the focal point of the “new MOCA experience.” This presentation is an innovative approach to museum and exhibition design. It will facilitate a new way of interacting with content: through the evocative use of space that stirs visitors’ emotions and breaks down barriers to deeper learning and understanding.
Chinatown Film Project
Chinatown is an evocative place. It exists in our cities and our imaginations, on our television screens and in our memories. Chinatown is a vibrant, sprawling immigrant community and a forgotten strip mall of buffet restaurants; it's the exploited Hollywood metaphor and yet a dense signifier of American noir.
The Chinatown Film Project tackles Chinatown's elusiveness and its stereotyped representations by constructing new images for the viewer. The project starts locally, where we asked ten of New York City’s most exciting filmmakers to present their unique vision of this global icon. This project will be showcased as one of the inaugural exhibitions in MOCA's expansive new space.
Featured award-winning filmmakers include:
* Wayne Wang
* Miguel Arteta
* So Yong Kim and Bradley Rust Gray
* Jem Cohen
The Chinatown Film Project features an online site where anyone can upload videos about Chinatowns around the world. This virtual community of makers and viewers speaks to a re-imagining of Chinatown as one interconnected global locality.
MOCA StoryMap
Now Accepting Submissions
Part of the core exhibit, the MOCA StoryMap gathers and documents the Chinese-American experience, one story at a time. By mixing images, audio and geography, each family story is catalogued and shared, creating a group portrait. Web access enables national participation, while a special interface in the museum allows for group activity and investigation.
Now you can contribute your stories to
MOCA's StoryMap >
