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Diaspora Tale #2: 1969 to Premiere at OACC October 17, 2009 |
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Written by Francis Wong
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Thursday, 14 May 2009 17:12 |
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Hi All, I look forward with great anticipation to this upcoming project both for the opportunity that this new artistic work provides for me and my collaborators and for the chance to return to Oakland Asian Cultural Center as a featured artist after an absence of nearly eight years. I have been impressed with the strides forward that OACC has made in recent years and am enjoying the working experience so far in planning this project. For this work, I will be delving into my own history with and connection to the consciousness movements of the 1960’s and 70’s, which have been so vital in inspiring so many of our generation and generations since. In this context I wish to make a work that explores the complexity of the period through the eyes of my older brother Tom, who emigrated from Hong Kong with my parents as well as through my own recollection of growing up in this period of the emergence of Asian American consciousness. It was in this period that young Asian Americans made the step of rejecting the term “oriental” and adopting the term “Asian American”. However, this pursuit of a new Asian American identity was a winding road (and continues to be). My brother’s path led him from UC Berkeley Ethnic Studies to the International Hotel (at the Wei Min garment factory cooperative) in San Francisco and into the tae kwan do (Korean martial art) community of the East Bay, a community that had major African American participation. So his own cultural identity during this period (his teens through his late 20’s) was an intricate hybrid of these experiences. In our relationship during this period his account of these experiences had a huge impact on me as I reached my own adulthood and pursued my own activist path. Unfortunately, my brother passed away at the age of 30 of a drug overdose in 1982. I have since had a full career as an activist, community worker and professional artist and have committed much of my artistic life sharing stories about and memorializing our Asian American legacy. In this work I will reflect upon the many difficult experiences that our community has had endure and ultimately overcome on the way to our unique contribution to the American narrative. I have collaborated with spoken word artist, body builder and martial artist AK BLACK (Jim Wilson) for nearly 10 years and find in him someone who could grasp some of what my brother was going after and translate into a distinctive artistic expression. I am also blessed to have Lenora Lee, a younger generation dancer and choreographer with Chinatown roots to collaborate with AK on the movement component of the work. She and the other younger artists in this work, John Carlos Perea and Karl Evangelista, have given great hope and encouragement that the legacy of this historic period will have continued agency today and in the future. Fpr more info please click here. Thanks for reading! Francis Wong |
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 14 May 2009 17:15 )
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ImprovisAsians 2009: The Art of Agency at San Francisco State April 27 - 29, 2009 |
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Written by Francis Wong
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Tuesday, 21 April 2009 08:01 |
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“The Art of Agency” at San Francisco State University College of Creative Arts will be a program of public dialogue, workshops and performances exploring the intersection of traditionality and hybridity in the formation of community. Featured guests include pianist/composer Jon Jang, dancer/choreographer/taiko artist Melody Takata, dance ethnologist Linda Johnson,Francis Wong and Hafez Modirzadeh and SF State faculty and alumni performers. All events are free and open to the public except the April 29 evening concert. Click here for schedule of events. Watch interview with Jon Jang Watch interview with Wesley Ueunten Watch interview with Hafez Modirzadeh about Sound Come-Unity 2009 |
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 30 April 2009 20:57 )
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New book Alien Encounters includes article by Kevin Fellezs on Asian Americans and Jazz |
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Written by Francis Wong
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Thursday, 19 February 2009 04:56 |
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A recently published book showcasing "innovative directions in cultural studies" includes an article by University of California at Merced Professor Kevin Fellezs entitled: "Silenced But Not Silent: Asian Americans and Jazz". The book, Alien Encounters: Popular Culture in Asian America edited by Mimi Thi Nguyen and Thuy Linh N. Tu was published by Duke University Press in 2007. Click here for a preview! |
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Last Updated ( Friday, 27 February 2009 08:01 )
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Traditions/Transformations 2009 at CounterPulse April 17-19, 2009 |
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Written by Francis Wong
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Sunday, 01 March 2009 17:54 |
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Featuring works by Melody Takata ("Shimenawa"), Tatsu Aoki (Re-ROOTED) and Genny Lim ("Pilgrimage") drawing upon cultural legacies that reveal new possibility. Also performing: Lenora Lee, Francis Wong, Hideko Nakajima and members of the Gen Ensemble. Co-presented by Asian Improv aRts and Genryu Arts. Click here for the sche Watch interview with Melody Takata. Watch interview with Tatsu Aoki. Watch interview with Genny Lim Watch interview with Lenora Lee |
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 30 April 2009 07:58 )
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Welcome to FrancisWong.net |
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Written by Administrator
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Monday, 18 August 2008 19:24 |
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Welcome to my redesigned site! Read a review in the October 22, 2008 San Francisco Bay Guardian by Rita Felciano of Dohee Lee's FLUX performance at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts Forum that I was a part of! Click here. |
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Last Updated ( Sunday, 01 March 2009 18:22 )
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