STEEPED IN SPILT MILK
05 20 2021 - 06 13 2021
OPENING ON 20 MAY 2021, 6 - 8 PM
RECEPTION AT BEVERLY’S. 8-11PM
24EBROADWAY IS PLEASED TO PRESENT STEEPED IN SPILT MILK, A GROUP EXHIBITION FEATURING WORKS BY TOMMY KHA, ALISON KUO, OLIVIER, JAIME SUNWOO AND MATT CHILTON, XIONG WEI, SHANGKAI KEVIN YU, AND ALICE YUAN ZHANG. THE SHOW'S RECEPTION WILL BE HELD AT BEVERLY’S AND WILL BE ON VIEW BY APPOINTMENT FROM MAY 20TH, TO JUNE 13TH, 2021.
FRUSTRATED BY RHETORIC USED IN RESPONSE TO THE RISE OF HATE CRIMES IN AMERICA TARGETED TOWARD THE AAPI COMMUNITY, STEEPED IN SPILT MILK SPOTLIGHTS THE NUANCED EXPRESSIONS AND EXPERIENCES OF THOSE AT RISK. LOCATED IN THE HEART OF NEW YORK’S CHINATOWN, THE SHOW ACTS AS A RECLAMATION OF TAKEN SPACE, GIVING BACK TO A COMMUNITY THAT HAS WORKED HARD TO ENRICH AMERICA WHILST ALSO PRESERVING THEIR OWN VALUES AND TRADITIONS.
AS WE WITNESS A SURGE OF FEAR AND VIOLENCE AGAINST THE IMMIGRANT BODY, SEEMINGLY EACH TRAGEDY IS QUICKLY FOLLOWED BY AN OUTPOUR OF REACTIONS, MANY KNEE-JERK AND LARGELY FUELED BY GUILT. THIS ACT OF PERFORMATIVE ACTIVISM CLASHED WITH MANY CULTURAL VALUES WITHIN THE AAPI COMMUNITY, SHEDDING A LIGHT ON A LACK OF LANGUAGE AND DEEPENING A NEED TO VISUALIZE WHAT IS NOT YET VERBALIZED.
FROM TEMPORARY VISA HOLDERS, IMMIGRANTS, TO FIRST GENERATION ASIAN AMERICANS, EACH ARTIST CONFRONTS THE ASSUMPTION OF THE SOCIETAL, FAMILIAL, AND PERSONAL ROLE OF THE EAST ASIAN, AND SOUTH EAST ASIAN BODY. THE EXHIBITION PUSHES BACK ON THE MODEL MINORITY MYTH WHICH PRESUMES BOTH PASSIVITY AND A PROCLIVITY FOR CONTINUAL LABOR. EACH PIECE SOFTENING THE RIGID FRAMEWORK PRESCRIBED BY THE PREDOMINANT AMERICAN NARRATIVE AND THE FALSITY OF THE AMERICAN DREAM.
THE EXHIBITION AIMS TO BREAK DOWN THE MONOLITHIC NOTIONS PRESENT IN THE UMBRELLA TERM “ASIAN.” THE TITLE, STEEPED IN SPILT MILK, COMBINES IMAGERY OF STEEPING TEA, A NOD TO WIDELY KNOWN ASIAN IMPORT, WITH MILK, A METAPHOR FOR WHITENESS. WHILE ALSO CRITICALLY ADDRESSING THE OLD PHRASE “DON’T CRY OVER SPILT MILK” BY MERGING AN IMPOSSIBLE ACTION WITH THE OCCURRENCE OF SOMETHING THAT CANNOT BE UNDONE. IN EVERY WORK SELECTED THERE ARE A MULTITUDE OF OFTEN CONFLICTING NOTIONS. THE SELF-CONTAINED CONFLICT HOLDS BOTH PRECIOUS AND SOMBER DUALITIES, ALLOWING FOR NUANCE TO ENTER EACH NARRATIVE, AND IN DOING SO REFRAMING AN ABILITY TO CONTAIN MULTITUDES AS A STRENGTH RATHER THAN A WEAKNESS.
STEEPED IN SPILT MILK IS RECEIVING GENEROUS SUPPORT FROM BEVERLY’S. 24EBROADWAY WILL BE DONATING A PORTION OF THE PROFITS TO RED CANARY SONG, ASIAN WOMEN GIVING CIRCLE, AND SEND CHINATOWN LOVE.
CURATED BY ALEXANDER SI & ALYSSA FREITAS.
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