A Look Behind 'Layered Being: A Celebration of AAPINH Heritage'

detail of Playground III by Mengru Zhou

When the team at Gallery B612 suggested I curate and design this year's AAPINH show, I knew I had been offered a truly precious opportunity – a chance to honor and celebrate a beautiful slice of our community in a time when celebrating the diversity shaping our country holds a different kind of weight than it ever has before.

I believe every community is made more beautiful by the individuals who shape it, and as a country of immigrants and their descendants, we have a truly unique kind of social and creative culture – one that is resilient, joyful, colorful, and most importantly, rich in diverse ideas and perspectives. To live between, amongst and within multiple cultures is to see, experience and move through the world in an incredibly unique way.

In conceptualizing this show I reflected on my own experiences as the child of an immigrant, and as a so called “third culture” kid– the beauty and the pain of navigating cultures, perspectives and languages, but also the richness added to my life from the countless places, peoples and histories blending around me, and what a privilege it is to know about a world beyond oneself.

I thought about the way immigrants and members of the diaspora shape the foundations of our communities, how each version of ‘home’ and ‘self’ is realized differently depending on where in the country one finds oneself, how the places we come from shape who we are and how we move through the world, how much beauty comes from this, and how much this layered existence strengthens the fabrics of the spaces we live in.

The artists in this show come from a variety of backgrounds, cultures, and creative journeys – and the works they have created span mediums, cultures, influences, preoccupations, and emotions, offering unique perspectives on the intersection of art, identity and heritage, and highlighting that there is no single way to exist in this world. It is with great joy that the team at Gallery B612 and myself share these works and stories with you, our beautiful community!

Though this show specifically celebrates our AAPINH diasporic community, we are also taking this opportunity to celebrate the diversity of our little corner of the world as a whole -- our gallery interactive map highlights the personal and cultural connections that have shaped our local community.

As Layered Being: A Celebration of AAPINH Heritage nears its final days at the gallery (you can see it until June 24th!), I invite you to stop by to share stories of your own layered being and celebrate these experiences with us!

Written by Grace Vallecillo-Drews

Assistant Curator & Education Programs Coordinator

Gallery B612