Seeds and Memory: Asian Diaspora Reimagined -- the Public Ritual

Artists: Gloria Lau 劉君蕙, Sidian Liu, Pacyinz Lyfoung, Rabiga Marx, Aurvi Sharma, Dr. Yamuna Sangarasivam, Peach Tao, Milagros “Mica” Verendia, Louise Yeung 楊浩怡
Guest composer: Simona D

Lead Collaborator: Fei Li

We are delighted to unveil events: an experimental exhibition with communal altar building and performance, titled Seeds and Memory—a divergent ensemble of non-binary transmigratory spirits coalescing to embody an emergent creative collective, on the move: visual artists, poets, scholars, urban planners, and activists, expressing a rich heritage of Asian diasporic maternal lineages—Tamil, Hmong, Laotian, Kazakh, Filipina, Indian, Chinese, Korean, and more.

The Experimental Exhibition
From October 24 to 29, 2023, 2–8 pm, My Gallery NYC will serve as the backdrop for an exhibition that melds installation art, performance, and community engagement—a mosaic of voices articulating multiple ways of knowing and being in the transmigration of Asian diasporic life. Our week-long festivities will reach a zenith with a mesmerizing performance on Saturday, October 28, from 7–8:30 p.m.

Unveiling our Public Ritual

Step into a realm where space is an evolving labyrinth, intricately woven with neon-infused installations. This is a dynamic landscape where each spectator, performer, and piece of art is entangled in a fluid dance of continual transformation.

The Chronotope—Eternal Moments in a Fleeting Universe:
Over a mesmerizing 1.5 hours, we will journey through 20-minute cycles. Each micro-episode encapsulates a universe of ideas, embodying a seamless blend of choreographed and improvised acts. Experience the temporal pulse of fleeting moments coexisting with the eternal—a dialogue between the spark of creativity and the echo of collective meaning.

The Interactive Symbiosis—Audience as Co-creators:
Your presence is a critical ingredient in a grand alchemy. You transition from an observer to a vital participant—a symbiotic co-creator in this intricate ceremony through a fusion of pre-arranged and spontaneous physical interactions, readings, and playful encounters.

Bodies as Living Syntax:
Within this scintillating milieu, human bodies assume roles far beyond the mere aesthetic. They act as dynamic architects—navigating, punctuating, and lending corporeal form to a complex narrative labyrinth. Engage in a multi-sensorial experience where choreography synergizes with text, morphing each story from a monologue into a communal tapestry of perception and sensation.

The Installation as a Portal to Future Temples
In a time marked by displacements and constantly shifting identities, the artists envisage an immersive experience that delves deeply into society’s intricate weave, probing how the notion of belonging has been sculpted in the Asian diaspora. The installation transforms My Gallery NYC from October 24 to 29 into a dynamic, self-sustaining microcosm, a world within a world where seeds become narratives and visitors metamorphose into avian agents of change.

Upon entering this sanctum, each visitor becomes a ‘bird,’ vested with the autonomy to move and scatter seeds throughout the space. The space becomes an ethereal, transcendental domain—a fluid, ever-evolving landscape catalyzing a multi-sensory engagement with the art, ancestral pasts, potential futures, static dwelling, and dynamic moving.

Adding a further layer of complexity and intrigue, the artists construct the installation as a Portal to Future Temples, opening avenues for contemplation about spiritual and societal constructs that may come to be. Here, ‘temple’ is a metaphor for places of gathering, unity, shared experiences, and wisdom. As envisioned by the artists, the temple of the future is one of inclusivity, where we celebrate the failure of ‘belonging’ and embrace the potentialities of uncertain, fluid formations of community gatherings and creative collectives, resonating with the dynamism that illuminates humans as co-creating creatures in ecological relationships with our more than human relatives in the avian, terrestrial, aquatic, and microbial worlds.

This project is sponsored, in part, by the Greater New York Arts Development Fund of the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs (DCLA), administered by Brooklyn Arts Council, and is fiscally sponsored by the New York Foundation for the Arts.

The Artists’ Book

This book is a gastronomic journey through stories, recipes, and artistic imagination. It challenges the undervaluation of culinary traditions and posits food as a language for communicating the transforming lived realities and aspirations of Asian diasporic communities. Seeds, integral to the narratives of family recipes contributed by women and non-binary humans, become metaphorical vehicles for transformation. These seeds manifest as temporary tattoos, embodying an ephemeral form of visual storytelling—a codified language and an ancestral practice linking the margins of society. The pairing of culinary traditions with tattoos becomes a counter-narrative, redefining the meaning of resistance and self-expression.

For More Information

To delve deeper into the art and literature encompassing “Seeds and Memory,” please visit:
Wearable Stories Book
https://www.whentheyhavetheirownhistorians.info/wearable-stories-2

This is more than an artists’ book and exhibition—it’s a vibrant community of storytellers, artists, and spectators. We invite you to be part of this remarkable journey to sow seeds and create memories that defy boundaries, breaking new ground in the fertile soil of collective imagination and cultural dialogues.
Contact Information:
My Gallery NYC 587 Franklin Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11238
Phone: (347) 446-5837
Project director, lead collaborator: Fei Li
Email: Contact@feili.us
Project Website: https://www.whentheyhavetheirownhistorians.info/
Accented Projects:
Website: https://accentedprojects.com/