What Can We Do? (WCWD?) is an artist grant program that supports artists and their creative projects showing care to the AAPI community in NYC. The program was created in response to the sharp increase in anti-Asian hate and violence during the pandemic which caused many people to experience grief, anxiety, and fear. WCWD? empowers artists, giving them a chance to find their place in the ecosystem of care through their talents and community connections.
This program is presented by Asian American Arts Alliance (A4) and is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council. Special thanks to Council Members Christopher Marte and Sandra Ung.
A4 has selected its 2024 WCWD? Awardees. Please find more information about them and their projects below.
View other Fellowships & Awards:
Project: “Strings of Touch”, a multimedia collaboration between Chinese Artists and Organizers (CAO) collective and Red Canary Song, explores the theme of connection and intimacy among Chinese massage parlor workers through cat-and-cradle, participatory performance, documentary, animation, and video.
Date(s): Wednesday, May 10, 2023 from 10am–4pm ET
Location(s): Flushing, Queens
Project: “A Korean and Chinese drama-inspired creative writing experience” explores the magic behind heart-fluttering moments on screen. We unravel the basics of what makes a scene truly SwoonWorthy and collaborate to create our own. With a focus on the fun of romance, we aim to help participants discover what makes something romantic to them and develop romantic identities they would love to see.
Date(s): Saturday, May 6, 2023 from 12–2pm ET
Location(s): Glow Cultural Center in Flushing, Queens
Register: Eventbrite
Project: “Chinatown Photo Album” is a community-sourced digital archive of family photographs in Manhattan’s Chinatown. Hannah and Lynn will host a free workshop for digitizing physical photographs at Think!Chinatown. Interested participants can attend the workshop or submit digital images directly to @ChinatownPhotoAlbum on Instagram or via email to chinatownphotoalbum@gmail.com.
Date(s): Thursday, April 27, 2023 from 3–6pm ET
Location(s): Think!Chinatown (1 Pike St.) in Chinatown, Manhattan
Project: “Shift,” a guided mediation workshop to help release old perspectives and embrace empowerment on May 5 and an intergenerational art project inviting participants to reflect on discomfort and to create art with two materials: one familiar, and one less so. Both workshops are in partnership with Hamilton-Madison House Smith NORK Senior Services.
Date(s)/Location(s): Friday, May 5, 2023 from 3:30–4:30pm ET and Thursday, May 11, 2023 from 3:30–4:30pm ET at Hamilton-Madison House Smith NORK Senior Services in Two Bridges, Manhattan.
Project: Want to take a dance class and learn some fun movements inspired by AAPI food culture? In this open-level 90 minute dance workshop, participants will learn a simplified excerpt of Here We Root, choreographed by Jiemin Yang. This excerpt drew inspiration from food experiences of AAPI communities. The workshop is aimed to encourage participants to express their identities through movements and celebrate AAPI culture.
Date(s)/Location(s): Sunday, April 30, 2023 from 1:00–2:30pm ET at Flushing Town Hall in Flushing, Queens AND Sunday, May 7, 2023 from 1–2:30pm ET at Museum of Chinese in America in Chinatown, Manhattan
Register: Eventbrite
Project: “Free Fruits for All” is a free, public event all about less common seasonal fruits. The artist Harley Spiller aka Inspector Collector will share information and samples of high-quality fruits that are less commonly known - such as Cacao, Longan, Loquat, Mangosteen, Passion Fruit, Rambutan, Wong Pei, et al. The artist will set up on the sidewalk and share his collections of multilingual books about fruit, fruit paring devices, and samples of tropical fruits. “Free Fruits for All” will be presented in English with hand-written translations in Chinese, Hindi, Korean, and Spanish.
Date(s): Saturday, May 20, 2023 from 1–3pm ET
Location(s): In front of Glow Cultural Center in Flushing, Queens
Project: Our Sonic Love: is a lineup featuring queer, trans, gender-non-conforming performers of Asian diasporic identities connecting heritage, culture, and traditions. Ranging from Asian-pop drag sets to cross-cultural musical performances on traditional Asian instruments, and a guided QiGong healing breath session, this performance event celebrates our visibility, community, and connection to our heritage.
This event’s focus is to create a generative and joyful space for us as queer, trans, gender-non-conforming folks of Asian descent. Our gender and sexual identities don’t mean we reject our cultural identities, if anything it makes the connection all the more important. There is an inherent queerness to Asian cultural traditions, a history of gender bending, drag-esque performances, and underlying stories with queer themes that we are honoring as performers. Our goal is to be curious and playful with the ways in which Asian cultural traditions are seen and performed, whether it be the instruments, songs, or practices.
Date(s): Saturday, May 13, 2023 at 1:30pm ET
Location(s): Queens Botanical Garden in Flushing, Queens
Register: RSVP Here
Project: An interactive ink wash painting workshop for seniors at the CPC Nan Shan Senior Center exploring the beauty and technique of the traditional art form. During the workshop, I provided participants with an introduction to the materials and tools used in ink wash painting, including brushes, ink, and paper. I also demonstrated various techniques, such as brush strokes, blending, and shading, and provided hands-on guidance and feedback as participants created their own ink wash paintings.
Date(s): Friday, March 31, 2023 from 10am–12:30pm ET
Location(s): CPC Nan Shan Senior Center in Flushing, Queens
Project: “Peace and Harmony” is a workshop in which participants dye Japanese paper, fold paper into flowers, and connect origami flowers to make medicine balls together, wishing for a healthy future.
Date(s): Saturday, April 22, 2023 from 11am–4pm ET
Location(s): Queens Botanical Garden in Flushing, Queens
Register: https://www.aaartsalliance.org/events/climate-arts-festival-2023
Project: “We Make This For Us” is an AAPI artists workshop centering on how cultural identity informs artistic practices of all media. Together, participants will cultivate a gathering space to cross-pollinate, creating from their own ideas and in reaction to others’ within a space of artistic affinity.
Date(s): Saturday, June 3, 2023 from 3–5pm ET
Location(s): P&T Knitwear in the LES, Manhattan
Project: A 3-hour puppeteering workshop for middle and high school students hosted by arts educator and performer Tau Bennett (Sesame Street, Cold Sober). The workshop will cover the basics of puppeteering technique and performance. Participants will learn techniques and have the opportunity to write and perform their own short scene in collaboration with others. The scenes will be filmed, edited, and shared with the participants after the workshop.
Date(s): Saturday, June 3, 2023 from 2-5pm ET
Location(s): Queens Historical Society in Flushing, Queens
Register: Fill out this form
Project: Celebrate Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month with Banana Ketchup, a comedy show with Filipino flavor. We’re partnering with the Asian American Arts Alliance and Send Chinatown Love to showcase diverse AAPIA comedy. A hilarious show centering AAPI women and nonbinary comedians. Performances by Dylan Adler (James Corden), Zubi Ahmed (Hulu), Ann Chun (Edinburgh Fringe Fest), Michelle Chan Bennett (Just For Laughs), Christine Kim (Very Big Very Asian). Hosted by Dominique Nisperos (ABC), Kyle Marian (Now This!), and Patricia Dinglasan (Broadway Comedy Club).
Date(s): Saturday, May 13, 2023 at 5 pm ET
Location(s): NOREE in Chinatown, Manhattan
Register: Eventbrite
Project: A flower crown and linocut printing workshop that invited participants of all ages to create their own floral moments and take time to slow down to create something as a gesture of care of either themselves or to gift to others. Reflected through the print motifs and floral choices, the theme of the workshop is inspired by the Chinese belief of “magpies on mums” which symbolizes bringing joy to the whole family.
Date(s): Saturday, May 27, 2023
Location(s): Queens Botanical Garden in Flushing, Queens
Project: A mental health campaign, in collaboration with Red Canary Song and Asians For Sex Positivity, titled “It’s Okay to Ask”. The campaign’s objective is to encourage communities in Chinatown and Flushing to find available mental health resources. The campaign posters will be distributed in Chinatown and Flushing during the week of May 15th.
Date(s): Monday, May 15–Sunday, May 21, 2023
Location(s): Chinatown, Manhattan and Flushing, Queens
Project: “BYOB (Bring Your Own Belongings)” is a one-day photoshoot where the dedicated Tai-chi community at Queens botanical Garden will bring one of their prized possession and get taken a photograph together. After the images are finalized, the works will be exhibited at the Queens Botanical Garden exhibition space.
Date(s): Thursday, April 25, 2023 from 10am–2pm ET
Location(s): Queens Botanical Garden in Flushing, Queens
Project: An abstract movement performance involving elements of table tennis
Date(s): Thursday, August 24, 2023 from 3:30–4:30pm ET
Location(s): Chinatown, Manhattan
Project: An opportunity for community gathering through food, hosted by Rose Van Dyne and Storm Thomas of Broadway Cooks. As a means of celebrating the community’s rich diversity and aiming to feed anyone who is hungry, free meals will be provided to the residents and houseless population of Flushing, Queens.
Date(s): Saturday, April 22, 2023 from 2–5pm ET.
Location(s): Flushing, Queens
Project: A polaroid portrait photo booth for low income Chinatown families, expanding to the larger Chinatown community at Seward Park.
Date(s): Sunday, May 7, 2023 from 1:30–3:30pm ET
Location(s): Hamilton-Madison House from 1:30-2:30pm ET and at Seward Park from 2:30-3:30pm ET in Chinatown, Manhattan.
Project: QAB presents Don’t Tell Scarlett: A Speakeasy Mixer for Queer and Trans Asian, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islanders in Arts and Entertainment. Community members at any point in their Queer journey and artistic practice are encouraged to join us for an evening of free food, drink, and performances! RSVP required.
Date(s): Monday, May 22, 2023 from 7–10pm ET
Location(s): Chinatown, Manhattan (location revealed upon registration)
Register: RSVP here
Project: A 2-Day Language Justice and Community Interpreting Workshop open to 20 interpreters of Asian Languages including Cantonese, Mandarin, Korean, Bengali, etc.
Date(s): Saturday, May 13 and Sunday, May 14, 2023 from 10am–5pm ET
Location(s): Minkwon Center in Flushing, Queens.
Register: Fill out this form
Project: A group mural painting session promoting peace and calm through collective artmaking with senior participants from the CPC Nan Shan Senior Center.
Date(s): Friday, May 19, 2023 from 10am–12pm ET
Location(s): CPC Nan Shan Senior Center in Flushing, Queens
Illumination Diabolo Dance presents a performance and workshop event with a goal to connect diabolo players and enthusiasts to come together and enjoy the exhilaration of this juggling sport. Diabolo performances and workshop will be showcased by emerging and professional diabolo artists.
Date(s): Friday, May 5, 2023, from 4:30 - 6:30pm ET
Location(s): Glow Cultural Center in Flushing, Queens.
Project: Mother May I: Healing in Sound and Drawing
Date(s): Saturday, May 13, 2023 at 12 pm ET
Location(s): Glow Cultural Center in Flushing, Queens
Register: Google Form
Project: “Expanding Borders of Chinatown” workshop invited youth and families to create collages using photos from and of Chinatown. Nina drew personal insights on past NYC AAPI leaders that brought transformations to Chinatowns and its people in expressive locales full of hidden pasts.
Date(s): Saturday, April 15, 2023 from 10 am–12 pm ET
Location(s): Taiwan Center, Inc. in Flushing, Queens
Project: KHENDAR’S BAZAAR was a pop-up shop and intimate Asian photo gallery featuring Asian models in original garments designed and made by the artist.
Date(s): Thursday, June 2, 2023 from 1:00–8:00pm ET
Location(s): East Village, Manhattan
Project: A collaboration with Undo Poverty: Flushing to design various graphics/illustrations for their upcoming documentary about poverty in Flushing, Queens
Date(s): Ongoing
Location(s): Flushing, Queens
Project: Initiated through a partnership between Jesse Obremski’s Gibney Company Moving Toward Justice Fellowship, OUR PATHS, and Obremski/Works, this AAPI VISA Support Workshop will support international artists (to the United States) in gathering community, meeting a lawyer, finding portfolio guidance, understanding their rights, and learning about supportive organizations in each person’s pursuit of an artist’s VISA. In further partnership with Gibney Company, Obremski/Works, Asian American Arts Alliance, Asian American Foundation, and government agencies, this AAPI VISA Support Workshop will be open to all international AAPI individuals, no matter what VISA they have currently, their age, or their status, and will be an annual event through Obremski/Works.
Date(s): Saturday, April 29, 2023 from 11am–1pm ET
Location(s): 280 Gibney, Studio W in the Financial District, Manhattan
Register: Fill out this form
Project: Bloom: A Black-Asian Friendship and Bouquet Making Experience. Make a free mini boquet and celebrate Black and Asian joy. Chanel will be taking friendship portraits throughout the afternoon and Alisha will have prompts for ice breaking, friendship building conversations. An assortment of blooms will be provided by Joy’s Flower Pot.
Date(s): Saturday, April 22, 2023 from 12–2pm ET
Location(s): Think!Chinatown (1 Pike St.) in Chinatown, Manhattan
Project: “A Collective Journey” is a workshop centered in movement exploration with the use of landscape imagery as means of expression and communication. In partnership with the YWCA of Queens, this workshop will be a part of their annual “Walk Together” event for older adults. Awakening our senses as we dive into the landscape oasis, we make connections to nature and reflect on our individual roles in building and sustaining our community.
Date(s): Friday, May 12, 2023 from 9:30am-12pm ET
Location(s): Kissena Park in Flushing, Queens
Project: A month long READ & GIVE initiative in May featuring RISOGRAPH prints of AAPIReadinglist designed by me. The initiative will take place online as well as in the bookstore P&T Knitwear, 180 Orchard Street, NY 10002, where people can make donations and get a copy of the RISOGRAPH print by buying books from the list. All donations will benefit Red Canary Song.
Date(s): May 1–31, 2023
Location(s): Online and at P&T Knitwear in the LES, Manhattan
Project: A six-week training in Wing Chun, a Chinese self-defense form, open to community members. The training took place from August 6-September 10, 2022 in the backyard of Baxter St. Camera Club in Chinatown, Manhattan.
Photo by Tommy Kha
Project: “Start with My Name” is a sewing workshop that invites participants to share their name through embroidery. Each embroidery is sewn onto a community quilt so we as Asian Americans can be seen and known by one another. The workshop happened on Thursday, September 15, 2022 from 6:30-8:30pm at the Museum of Chinese in America in Chinatown, Manhattan. Karen will continue to hold workshops, please follow her Facebook page to learn more.
This project was made possible with support from Fiskars.
Project: A two-hour workshop with Asian heritage, female-identifying individuals where participants shared impactful personal experiences with each other and then contributed to a group timeline of meaningful moments in each other’s lives. The workshop is a part of “Untitled Landscape,” an ongoing human-connecting project that aims to map out the landscape of a human life. The workshop took place on September 18, 2022 in the Garment District, Manhattan.
Photo by Tom Matthew Wolfe
Project: “The Blu Room” is a one-man multi-lingual, multi-cultural theatrical act presented in a late-night talk show format on topics like the generational gap, anti-Asian hate crimes, beauty standards, mental health, and empowerment. A live performance of the show took place on Friday, September 23, 2022 at 7:00 pm at Prime Produce in Hell’s Kitchen, Manhattan.
This project is made possible with support from Prime Produce.
Photo by Dennis Kwan
Project: A two-part Zen meditation workshop – the first part of the workshop introduces the basics of meditation, the second part deepens the practice and offers participants time to reflect on how practice has helped them. The workshop was organized for the staff of Communities Resist on September 16, 2022 and on September 30, 2022 at Marsha P. Johnson State Park in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.
Photo by Beowulf Sheehan
Project: A 1.5 hour dance workshop for the AAPI community exploring community and self care through dance and play. This workshop welcomed participants of all experience levels and took place on Tuesday, September 27, 2022 from 6-7:30 pm at the Brooklyn Arts Exchange in Park Slope, Brooklyn.
Photo by CONFIDANZ
Project: A sketch/short film in Hoisan and Cantonese, subtitled in English, around emotional/mental health. There was an in-person viewing party for folks to engage with the material and each other on Sunday, September 25, 2022 from 11am-12:30pm ET at The Market Line on the lower level of Essex Market in LES, Manhattan.
This project is made possible with support from The Market Line.
Photo by Peter Konerko
Project: A public workshop of Buried Ruins, a full-length play with a cast of all Vietnamese and/or AAPI artists, centered on healing and processing generational trauma, as well as, living in a society that fetishizes and enacts violence against women and femme bodies. The workshop took place on Friday, September 30, 2022 at 3pm ET at the 59E59 Theatre in Midtown, Manhattan.
Photo by Sub/Urban Photography
Project: A letter writing workshop inviting community members to write letters to loved ones took place on August 27, 2022 at the ROAR Festival at Sara D. Roosevelt Park in Chinatown, Manhattan, and on October 9, 2022 at the Elizabeth Street Garden in Nolita, Manhattan.
Photo by David Straange
Project: “All That We Hold” is a piece choreographed by Noah and his collaborator, Audrey Thao Berger, that explores the longing to understand our ancestors through movement, narrative and music. They performed this piece at Arts On Site in NoHo, Manhattan. They invited the audience to reflect on the same questions they pondered when creating the work.
Photo by RJ Lewis
Project: A ‘zine of photographs taken over the past year capturing the joy of community members coming together for various events in Chinatown, Manhattan. The first 50 copies sold out; please follow Cindy on Instagram for updates on where to find future prints.
Photo by Michael Stewart
Project: A storytelling pop-up book workshop serving youth, with the goal to help them tell their stories, express their truth, and take pride in their culture and identity The workshop took place on Thursday, September 29, 2022 at 3:30pm at the Chatam Square Library in Chinatown, Manhattan.
This project was made possible with support from the Children’s Museum of the Arts.
Project: Dana Leon of TEKTONIKmusic.org led a healing music session for the AAPI community affected by domestic and public acts of violence in partnership with Womankind. The session took place online on September 12, 2022.
Photo by Zoe Zhang
Project: An interactive piano performance and workshop for the senior community at Hamilton-Madison House. The performance featured Chinese folk tunes, music of living Chinese composers, and some Western classical pieces sprinkled in. It took place September 21, 2022 at the Hamilton-Madison House in LES, Manhattan.
Photo by Douglas Gorenstein
Project: DRAWN TOGETHER is an array of exquisitely detailed line drawings depicting historical New York City Chinatown businesses, landmarks and community organizations.
A portion of the proceeds from this exhibition goes back to these Chinatown businesses and to the Chinatown Mural Project, a not-for-profit dedicated to bringing culturally appropriate large-scale murals to the NYC Chinatown area and beyond.
The drawings will be shown at Pearl River Mart Gallery in SoHo, Manhattan from September 10 – December 28, 2022. There was an opening reception on Saturday, September 10, 2022 from 1-3pm ET attended by community members and representatives of the businesses featured in the drawings.
Project: “Embodying Pleasure as Resistance” is a workshop focused on nurturing our inner child through play and community care. The workshop took place on Friday, September 30, 2022 from 6-8:30pm at the A4 offices in DUMBO, Brooklyn.
Photo by Justin Kim
Project: A custom quadriptych mural project painted in partnership with SAYA in Elmhurst, Queens. The mural represents timeless themes highlighting the diverse communities and unique qualities around Queens that SAYA calls home. This project aims to provide a visual identity of their own through joyful positive art in their headquarters space. The project took place over the course of a week in September 2022.
Photo by Louie Herman
Project: Giving Space/Changing Space – In the busy immigrant neighborhood of Jackson Heights, how do we give space with, to, and for each other? How do we change public spaces to support community wellness? In this interactive art experience, Anjali Deshmukh and Purvi Shah explored how we – as children, as women, as new immigrants, as life-long New Yorkers – give and change space, how we are a part of a larger whole, and how we change the whole through the light of our presence and participation.
The workshop happened on Saturday, September 17, 2022 from 6-7:30pm at Travers Park in Jackson Heights, Queens (near 34th Avenue sidewalk benches).
