Lotus Link Up: Cocktails, Comedy, and Connection for AAPI & ALLIES
2022-05-25 16:00 - 20:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Somar Bar & Lounge, 1727 Telegraph Ave, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
We’ve partnered with Somar Bar & Lounge on a fun and festive Happy Hour event. Enjoy a night of cocktails, comedy, and connection featuring DJ Trixie, Comedian Shawn Felipe, Singer/Songwriter Vince A, and emcee Stephanie Hoang.

1727 Telegraph Ave
Oakland, CA 94612
Wednesday, May 25
4PM – 8PM

Raffle tickets will also be sold at the event for the chance to win great prizes, including:

Rare and intimate beer tasting experience for four with Brian Chan at Tiger’s Tap Room and $175 Gift Card to Tiger’s Tap Room. Value = $500
Director’s Tour to the Charles M. Schulz Museum for five, “Happiness is” comic book, “Conversations with Charles M. Schulz” book. Value = $300
Umami Mart Bartender’s Toolkit. Value = $150
1 Wine Tasting Package: Hall Winery The Art of Cabernet (for 6 people) and Cakebread Winery Classing Tasting (for 4 people). Value = $100
1 Wine Tasting Package: Hall Winery The Art of Cabernet (for 6 people) and Cakebread Winery Classing Tasting (for 4 people). Value = $100
Malaya Tea Room Gift Certificate for two afternoon teas. Value = $70

$5 = 1 ticket entry; $20 = 5 ticket entries
Support OACC while enjoying innovative cocktails at local hotspot, Somar Bar & Lounge. Free to attend with a portion of all drink sales donated to OACC. Bring your friends and colleagues!
* This event is part of OACC’s new Lotus Link Up — connecting AAPI & Allies young professionals in the East Bay — to create and connect while exploring Oakland’s vibrant food and drink scene.

Artist/Entertainment Line Up:
”Trixamillion is an open format DJ born and raised in the Bay Area playing at your neighborhood bars and clubs in San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose, and beyond. Not only can she party rock a crowd, but has even played for non-profits, corporations, and weddings. Some of her favorite genres to mix are R&B, House, Afrobeats, and eclectic remixes. She represents Cuffin: All Thangs R&B Party, San Jose and Ladies 1st DJ Club, Bay Area. You can catch her spinning virtually on Twitch or locally in the Bay Area.” Honolulu, Hawaii comedian, actor and personality, Shawn Felipe is known for his laconic and clever real-life stories as they expand internationally. His Live, Stand -Up Comedy stretches around the globe from the USA to Countries overseas such as Singapore,
Canada, Japan, Korea and the Middle East. He is no stranger to colleges and university’s Nationwide along with adding color to an array of corporate industries. Performance has earned him a nomination for Best New Artist in the Hawaii Music Awards; Best Take Out Comic in Hawaii; And the Most Recognized Comedy Competition in the USA. Shawn was also noted the Top 7 Comic at the World renowned 36th Annual San Francisco International Comedy Competition.
Shawn’s Stand-Up Comedy has been featured on various international networks including WorldAsia TV, AZN TV, IA TV, TFC Channel, Sprint Comedy, Time Network, and National Lampoons Comedy Radio. Shawn has also been a guest star on NBC’s cop TV series “Hawaii” and has been on several national commercials. Not to forget mentioning, Shawn was a part of a team to win first place on Food Network’s “The Great Food Truck Race!” He and his team, Aloha Plate, won $50k and a State of the Art Food Truck that is now in operation. Stephanie Hoang was born and raised in Oakland, CA in the San Antonio neighborhood. She graduated from UC Berkeley, majoring in Social Welfare and Asian American & Asian Diaspora Studies, and has worked in restorative justice, youth development, and education. Serving as an Oakland Asian Cultural Center Board Member, she is also an Academic and College Counselor in East Oakland, preparing high school students for college and career opportunities. She is committed to amplifying the voices of young people, and building understanding across generations and cultures with an anti-racist framework. In her spare time, she enjoys arts and crafts, photography, filmmaking, and (eating, sometimes cooking) food. Bay Area artist Vince A is a Filipino singer/songwriter and producer who has recently started his solo career after his departure from the Hip-Hop group he founded known as “The Lychee Boys”. He felt that writing and producing songs for himself rather than a group was more spiritually fulfilling, allowing him to put his whole heart into his music. His writing and production were recently acknowledged when music.com chose his song, “Understand” by The Lychee Boys, to be mixed by Sony out of 800+ submissions. His focus on his music now goes beyond writing the average catchy love song, hoping to communicate the message of “you are not alone, more people are dealing with the same situation than you think and you’ll be ok”. While still writing catchy hooks and memorable punchlines, he is able to honestly convey strange but relatable experiences in a way that is easily listenable yet powerful.

Virtual Book Talk: "The All-American Crew" with Author Russell N. Low
2022-05-27 18:00 - 19:30 | CA
How the Early Chinese American Experience Shaped the Greatest Generation
“…Low is a talented storyteller who has woven engaging family tales into a greater American story of ten men from different lives and backgrounds who went to war and bonded into a tight crew, symbolic of an America that is uniquely able to forge strength from diversity.”
—Ted Gong, Executive Director and Founder, 1882 Foundation
Join this virtual book talk to hear from author Russell N. Low about his second novel, The All-American Crew. On January 23, 1943, a B-24 Liberator bomber and its crew of ten men disappeared without a trace in New Guinea. Their families never knew what happened to them. Now, 80 years later, their long-forgotten letters and dusty photographs finally tell their story in Russell’s new narrative nonfiction work.
The All-American Crew presents Ah Ying’s grandsons, Loren and Stan, who enlist in the Army Air Force and go off to the Pacific to fight for their country’s freedom. Their heroic struggles in New Guinea and Saipan offer a personal look at the assimilation of Chinese Americans into fighting crews and units that included young men from every cultural and ethnic background. This novel is a sequel to Russell’s first novel, Three Coins.

Donations are appreciated and no one will be turned away for lack of funds.

About the Author
Russell N. Low is the nephew of Stanley Low and a California-born fourth-generation Chinese American physician. Low is the author of Three Coins, which tells the story of his great-grandmother Ah Ying, who was enslaved as a child and trafficked to California, where she escaped from slavery with the help of her future husband, Hung Lai Wah, a worker on the transcontinental railroad. The story of Ah Ying, Hung Lai Wah, and their descendants has been featured on the History Channel, BBC Radio, National Public Radio, and the Voice of America, and is included in the California State Railroad Museum and the Smithsonian Museum of American History.

Creative Voices of the Vietnamese Diaspora
2022-06-04 14:00 - 16:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
Join artists and writers at the Oakland Asian Cultural Center for Creative Voices of the Vietnamese Diaspora. Artist Katherina Nguyen will discuss her works in the “Textures of Remembrance” exhibition, as well as her work with the DVAN – Texas Tech publishing imprint and upcoming Mapping the Diaspora project. She’ll be joined by panelists Lan Duong and Kathy L. Nguyen, the editors of Troubling Borders and contributors to Watermark: Vietnamese American Poetry & Prose, as well as Isabelle Pelaud, Founder and Executive Director of the Diasporic Vietnamese Artists Network (DVAN).
The panel discussion will draw on the creative outlets and collections found, created, or published to share interwoven cross-generational Vietnamese voices and perspectives of war, refuge, and identity.

This program is presented in partnership with the Diasporic Vietnamese Artists Network, Exhibit Envoy, and Eastwind Books of Berkeley.

Image Credit: Cover art of Troubling Borders.

About the Speakers (in alphabetical order by last name)

Lan Duong is Associate Professor in Cinema and Media Studies at the University of Southern California. She is the author of Treacherous Subjects: Gender, Culture, and Trans-Vietnamese Feminism (Temple UP, 2012) and coeditor of Southeast Asian Women in the Diaspora: Troubling Borders in Literature and Art (UW Press, 2013). Her poem has appeared in Watermark: Vietnamese American Poetry and Prose (Asian American Writers Workshop, 1998), a reprint of which will be published by Texas Tech University in 2023 to celebrate its 25th year anniversary. Other poems can be found in Oberon (2018), Spoon River Review (2018), Bold Words: Asian American Writing to Span the Centuries (Rutgers University, 2001), and Tilting the Continent: Southeast Asian American Writing (New Rivers Press, 2000).

Katherina Nguyen is a creative technologist exploring ways to better bridge the past and future. Her work leading high-impact systems design for organizations like Harvard Kennedy School and Google taught her to appreciate the connectivity of global societies and ecosystems. Currently she works on interactive AI storytelling tools at Meta to empower more diverse voices with a vocabulary to access new media frontiers. She believes in the power, freedom, and responsibility of communities to come together to actively shape strong, inclusive narratives. A Bay Area native and 1.5 generation Vietnamese-American immigrant via the H.O. program, she has been exploring her evolving diaspora identity through poetry and narrative essays. With DVAN, Kat leads the Texas Tech publishing series and upcoming Mapping the Diaspora project.

Kathy Nguyễn is Vice President of Research for ESG & Data Intelligence at Diligent, a modern governance company that empowers transformational leaders to build more successful, equitable, and sustainable organizations. A former educator, she has taught Interdisciplinary Studies at the City College of San Francisco and Berkeley City College and was the Managing Editor of Nhà Magazine. Her short stories and essays have appeared in Fringe, Fourteen Hills, Women’s World, and Nhà, among other publications.

Isabelle Thuy Pelaud is Professor of Asian American Studies at SF State University; and the Executive Director of the Diasporic Vietnamese Artists Network (DVAN), an organization that promotes Vietnamese cultural productions in the Diaspora. She is the author of This Is All I Choose To Tell: History and Hybridity in Vietnamese American Literature and the co-editor of award winning Troubling Borders: An Anthology of Art and Literature by Southeast Asian Women in the Diaspora. She is currently writing a novel inspired by her mother.

Additional bios to come.

“Textures of Remembrance” is a traveling exhibit created in partnership between Exhibit Envoy, the Diasporic Vietnamese Artists Network and Oakland Asian Cultural Center. This project was made possible with support from California Humanities, a non-profit partner of the National Endowment for the Humanities, and California Arts Council, a state agency with a mission to strengthen arts, culture, and creative expression as the tools to cultivate a better California for all. Visit calhum.org and arts.ca.gov.

Queer Trans Asian Pride - A Community Gathering
2022-06-04 17:30 - 20:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
or scan the code below!

Join the QTAPI(Queer Trans API) Coalition for an evening of community gathering.
An evening of fun, food, and films…Happening at Oakland Asian Cultural Center right in Oakland’s Chinatown, this event is to highlight, celebrate and bring together Queer Transgender Gender Non-Binary Intersex ASIAN PACIFIC ISLANDERS during the API Heritage Month. A gathering presented to you by ParivarBayArea in association with Oakland Asian Cultural Center along with QTAPI Coalition. Come out to enjoy food, drinks, and performances by Asian Queer Trans Artists!
Vaccinations, boosters, and testing kits will be also available onsite. And a community fair for resources.
Come out and be part of the community and be part of Asian PRIDE.

This event is part of 2022 San Francisco Bay Area QTAPI Week.

Telling Our Stories: A Celebration of Oakland and Bay Area’s Diverse Voices
2022-06-11 14:00 - 16:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
For many of us who have experienced displacement and marginalization, we tell our stories not only to survive — we do it so we can also fully thrive.
Over six weekly sessions, 10 local BIPOC, queer/trans, immigrant/refugee storytellers gathered to connect and share stories that explore “home” and “home-making” for oneself in this often-times inhospitable world we live in.
Through first-person narration, along with family photos and archival footage, they create intimately personal video stories that will be shared at this special celebration screening on June 11th. A celebration of Oakland and Bay Area’s diverse voices, this event will culminate with a panel that discusses the storytellers’ process in creating and sharing their works, and the vital role that creativity and storytelling play in community-building.
Led by facilitator Edward Gunawan, this gathering is made possible by the generous support from the City of Oakland Cultural Funding Program, and in partnership with Oakland Asian Cultural Center and ARTogether.

About the Storytellers and Facilitator (in alphabetical order of last name):
Lujain Al-Saleh is a labor organizer and public health advocate living in Oakland, California. She graduated with a Master of Public Health in Global Health & Environment from the UC Berkeley School of Public Health in 2020 and completed her undergraduate degree at UC Davis with a major in Environmental Science & Management and minors in Middle East & South Asia Studies and Professional Writing.
Jyoti Bachani is a human, storyteller, poetry lover, professor, who likes to walk, dance, cook, and sleep, not in that order. Over-educated with multiple degrees from some fine institutions in three different continents that taught her to pass what she knows on, by taking on the challenge to put knowledge into practice, for serving the greater good.
Jenny Fang is a writer and product manager. Born and raised in the East Bay, she can’t stand same old same old. Known by her friends to seek new meaningful experiences, you will always find her doing something that fills her with joy.
Edward Gunawan is a writer and filmmaker who creates socially-impactful projects and special events to facilitate meaningful connections and community-building. A queer Indonesian-born Chinese immigrant, he now resides on Ohlone land in Oakland, CA. Visit addword.com for more.
J Jha is a GNC South Asian asylee, who is re-imagining the world from trans centers of gravity. In 2019, they presented the world premiere of Mahâbhârata, a solo-telling of the great Indian epic, where the re-tellng presents the non-cis gendered male perspective that has dominated this conversation for all time.
Jasmine Liang is a multidisciplinary artist and student organizer. She currently uses mapmaking as a form of memoir and documentation of the city. As a co-founding member of the Art Student Union at San Francisco State University, Jasmine is committed to connecting the community to local artists and organizations.
Carmen Lopez was born and raised in the East Bay. She studied environmental systems/policy at UC San Diego and currently does equity-focused environmental policy work. She loves trying new recipes, finding new ways to express her creativity, running, and yoga.
Austin Tang is a designer by vocation, hunter-gatherer of stories by inclination. A happily transplanted east coaster by way of long meandering stints in Asia. Now enjoying being a dad, finding greater rootedness and searching for the balance point between peace of mind and reflexive googling.
Man-Tso Wei was born in Taiwan and moved to the U.S. in 2017. He currently works in the East Bay as a social worker. As part of his work, he finds meaning in working with people, especially those in marginalized communities, to find their voice, transform suffering, and resist oppression.
Chey Yen is a queer and trans Chinese-American from San Francisco, with ancestral ties to Hong Kong and Vietnam. Having created a few short films in the past, they hope to return to the practice of creating personal video stories with other artists through this workshop.
Vera Yin dreams of rivers, listens with ancestors, forages beneath weeds, meanders through language, dances between moments, sculpts from wind, swims among stars, reaches across unknowing, drifts along leisurely, lost since the beginning.

Celebrating Our HeART-filled Heritage: Hālau KaUaTuahine
2022-06-18 14:00 - 15:30 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
Members of Hālau KaUaTuahine will share the vibrant dances and traditions of Hawai’i onstage at the Oakland Asian Cultural Center. Following the performances will be various interactive workshops for attendees to learn more about hula. Attendees will be asked to pre-register for these workshops through the RSVP form (above).

Post-performance workshops include:
Construct Your Own Lei Lāʻī
Lāʻī (tī-leaf) is considered to have the ability to ward off evil and encourage positive energy. It is revered as a symbol of divine protection and closely associated with the hula tradition. Lei are symbols of love, honor and continuity. Creating, gifting and wearing a lei lāʻī is therefore an act of deep aloha. Join us in a mini workshop in which you will learn how to weave your own lei lāʻī.
Construct Your Own Kukui Pendant Necklace
The kukui (candlenut) is symbolic of enlightenment and knowledge, as the nut itself can be used as a source of light. For this reason, they are often worn by educators and for ceremonial occasions. In this mini workshop, you will learn how to create your own kukui nut pendant.
Learn Hula Noho (Sitting Hula)
The hula is a dance form which interprets stories, prayers and poems. There are many forms of hula, including one in which the dancer remains seated and conveys the story with their hands, voice, upper body movement and expression. Join us in a mini workshop where you will be introduced to this traditional form of dance.

About the Artists

Hālau KaUaTuahine is an organization dedicated to the study, protection and perpetuation of the performing arts of Hawai’i. It is named after the gentle “sister” rain that falls in the valley of Mānoa in Honolulu. They have presented in performance throughout California and internationally, appearing in venues ranging from the Hollywood Bowl and Kū Mai Ka Hula of Hawaiʻi Island, Maui, Oʻahu and Kauaʻi, to the Heiva celebrations of Tahiti, French Polynesia and Te Papa Tongareva, the National Museum of New Zealand. The hālau will soon celebrate its 30th anniversary.
Māhealani Uchiyama is an award-winning dancer, musician, composer, choreographer, recording artist, author and teacher. She is the founder and director of the Māhea Uchiyama Center for International Dance in Berkeley and is Kumu Hula of Hālau KaUaTuahine. She is the creator and director of the Kāpili Polynesian Dance and Music Workshops. She holds a BA in Dance Ethnology and an MA in Pacific Islands Studies from the University of Hawaiʻi. She trained in traditional hula and Tahitian ʻori under the late Kumu Hula (hula master) Joseph Kamōha’i Kahā’ulelio. Learn more at https://www.mahea.com/.

About the Series
“Celebrating Our HeART-filled Heritage” champions local Asian and Asian Pacific Islander performing artists, with the goal of providing a platform for accomplished local performing artists and exposing our diverse community in the East Bay to compelling, culturally relevant artists and performances that inspire intergenerational and cross-cultural exchange. The performing arts series is supported in part by the Walter and Elise Haas Fund.
Donations are appreciated and no one will be turned away for lack of funds.

Become a Changemaker: Learn More About Recycling & Composting in Oakland
2022-06-24 13:00 - 14:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
Join us in person for a quick presentation and Q&A to learn more about how we recycle and compost in our city. We’ll go over what happens to recycle and compost after it is picked up and how you can do simple steps to help the environment. These changes can make an impact, learn how to become a changemaker with us! Please RSVP.

Jikimee - AAPI Elder Voices
2022-06-30 11:00 - 12:30 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
In collaboration with the Korean Community Center of the East Bay (KCCEB), Oakland Asian Cultural Center’s AAPI Elder Voices Project presents a storytelling and photo exhibit that shares stories of resilience and strength of community seniors. Throughout the pandemic, KCCEB has convened monthly online gatherings with Korean American seniors to combat their isolation. Named “Jikimee” (Korean for “Community Protector”), this group visited healing spaces together, such as the Gardens at Lake Merritt and the Angel Island Immigration Station, where they shared personal stories of community and immigration journeys. This photo exhibition and story sharing event will highlight their collected oral histories through video interviews as well as portraits by photographers Andria Lo and Ella Chang as a part of the AAPI Elder Voices Project.
About the AAPI Elder Voices Project: Amid the unrelenting pandemic, our AAPI seniors have endured isolation, insecurity, and fear from widespread xenophobia. Through the healing power of personal and community oral history, this project aims to uplift the voices and rich experiences of our elders. Made possible by the generous support of the Senior Assistance Foundation East Bay, the AAPI Elder Voices Project comes out of OACC’s Oakland Chinatown Oral History Project which began in 2006. For more info, visit www.chinatownmemories.org
This event is brought to you in partnership with Korean Community Center of the East Bay and generously funded by Senior Assistance Foundation Eastbay.

Natto Presentation & Tasting Session
2022-07-09 10:00 - 11:30 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
Eien will talk about natto, the fascinating, delicious, and nutritious fermented soybeans from Japan. The demo will include samples of fresh natto and offer ideas for traditional and non-traditional preparations. In Japan, natto is highly regarded as a ‘superfood’ with many health benefits including cardiovascular health, brain function, bone and teeth strength, and improved digestive system. Because all natto imported into the United States is frozen, this is a very rare opportunity to taste fresh, organic natto, whether you consider yourself a fan or not yet!
ADMISSION FEE* (includes fresh natto sample for tasting)

$25 – Regular Admission
$30 – Regular Admission + Donation

This event is presented in partnership with the Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Northern California. The Center is also offering the same workshop at their facility on Sunday, July 10. Click here to view The Center’s workshop event registration page.
*Fees and donations help cover program expenses and sustain OACC’s capacity to bring high-quality workshops to our audiences. If the above fee presents a high barrier to your participation, please email programs@oacc.cc for assistance.

About the Instructor

Eien Hunter-Ishikawa is a musician and educator based in Portland, Oregon specializing in drumset, taiko, percussion, and shinobue. Born in Japan, his passion for drumming started at an early age through the involvement of a youth taiko ensemble directed by Saburo Mochizuki, a founding member of Tokyo’s pioneering taiko ensemble Sukeroku Daiko. Eien continues to work in a wide variety of artistic collaborations and offers private lessons, online instruction, and workshops that also highlight his non-taiko areas of expertise including knife sharpening, vegetable fermentation, and natto demonstrations.

Japanese Knife Sharpening Workshop
2022-07-09 13:30 - 15:30 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
In this workshop, Eien Hunter-Ishikawa will teach the basics of Japanese knife sharpening on water stones. Japanese knife culture is distinct in several ways: the blade is sharper and thinner, sharpening is done on whetstones, and chefs sharpen their own knives in order to accommodate their individual cutting needs. After this introduction of basic techniques, you will be able to sharpen your own knives at home and experience the true joy of cooking with a sharp blade.
NOTE: Please bring your kitchen knives to sharpen during the class. Space is limited to 15 spots so early registration is advised.
WORKSHOP FEE* (includes a King KW65 whetstone for each participant to take home)

$80 – Regular Admission
$90 – Regular Admission + Donation

This event is presented in partnership with the Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Northern California. The Center is also offering the same workshop at their facility on Sunday, July 10. Click here to view The Center’s workshop event registration page.
*Fees and donations help cover program expenses and sustain OACC’s capacity to bring high-quality workshops to our audiences. If the above fee presents a high barrier to your participation, please email programs@oacc.cc for assistance.

About the Instructor

Eien Hunter-Ishikawa is a musician and educator based in Portland, Oregon specializing in drumset, taiko, percussion, and shinobue. Born in Japan, his passion for drumming started at an early age through the involvement of a youth taiko ensemble directed by Saburo Mochizuki, a founding member of Tokyo’s pioneering taiko ensemble Sukeroku Daiko. Eien continues to work in a wide variety of artistic collaborations and offers private lessons, online instruction, and workshops that also highlight his non-taiko areas of expertise including knife sharpening, vegetable fermentation, and natto demonstrations.

Bandung To The Bay: Intersections of Solidarity
2022-07-15 - 2022-08-28 | CA
Part of OACC’s Open E.A.R.S. for Change series
In partnership with the EastSide Arts Alliance and the Joyce Gordon Gallery, the Oakland Asian Cultural Center presents “Bandung To The Bay,” a showcase of the history of Black and Asian solidarity across various movements. This exhibition consists of historical, archival documents connected to the international Bandung Conference and Bay Area Asian & Black activist solidarity movements including the Black Panther Party of Self-Defense. Up to 10 local artists’ works will be selected by a jury panel to join this exhibition.
Thank you to everyone who submitted artworks to OACC’s Artist Call!

The Artist Call is now closed. Deadline for submissions was May 31, 2022 at 5pm.
If your work is selected, you will receive an email by June 24th with drop-off information for physical works.
Selected artworks will need to remain at OACC for the duration of the exhibition until August 28th.
All artworks must be picked up the week of August 28th.

Pick-up hours: Tue-Fri 12pm-4pm. Email programs@oacc.cc if additional coordination is needed.

Artists retain 100% commission of artwork sold and are responsible for handling all transactions.
OACC is unable to provide insurance coverage for artworks, but has hi-def security cameras and onsite security personnel monitoring the facility at all times. OACC staff will take the following precautions to ensure safety of artworks while onsite: a) provide dedicated onsite storage space before installation and b) onsite staff presence during exhibit hours.

Timeline

March 1: Artist call opens
May 31: Artist call closes at 5pm Pacific
By June 17: Jury panel selects artworks
By June 24: Artists notified of jury results
Early July: Install exhibition at OACC
July 15: Exhibit reception at OACC
August 28: OACC Exhibition closes
Week of August 28: Pickup all artworks from OACC

For additional questions, please email programs@oacc.cc.

Confirmed Artist Call Jurors (alphabetical, subject to change)
Ellen Bepp is a mixed media and textile artist and taiko (Japanese drum) musician. For over 40 years she has endeavored to give voice to her Japanese cultural roots, to honor nature and to address political concerns through visual expression and the language of the drum. She began taiko training in 1974 under Grand Master Seiichi Tanaka, founder of the San Francisco Taiko Dojo, and went on to become an original performing member of San Jose Taiko and founding member of Somei Yoshino Taiko Ensemble. Ellen has exhibited her art nationally and internationally since 1980 and in 1988 she co-founded 9-11 Studios, a live/work artist complex in Oakland, CA. Her work has spanned a range of media from painting to wearable art, installations, theatrical costume and set design, collage and hand cut paper. Her interest in the arts of Asia and Latin America led to her involvement in humanitarian projects and textile research in indigenous communities of Guatemala, Nicaragua, Peru and Mexico. She continues to explore the connection between art and culture of these civilizations as they inform her identity as an Asian American woman artist. (Source: https://members.aawaa.net/artists/ellen-bepp)
Eric Murphy is a photographer, graphic design artist, independent curator and art collector. He has been supporting the Oakland arts since 1999. He was a long time former staff of Pro Arts Gallery in Oakland for over 10 years and represented bay area artists during that time. He has supported bay area galleries such as Slate Contemporary, Firehouse Art Center & Harrington Gallery, Evolve the Gallery. In 2012, he was Project Manager and Curator for the Oakland-Fukuoka Artist Exchange, a traveling exhibition of works by Oakland artist, James Gayles and Fukuoka artist, Hiroko To in celebration with Oakland and Fukuoka, Japan’s 50th anniversary as sister cities with collaborative public art projects permanently installed in Fukuoka, Japan’s sister city gardens and Oakland City Hall. Murphy is currently the Gallery Curator of Joyce Gordon Gallery, Curatorial Advisor for Tea Roots organization based in Oakland and San Francisco, Ca and current member of the Oakland Public Art Advisory Committee (PAAC). He also successfully completed two terms (2012 – 2018) as a re-appointed member of the Alameda County Arts Commission and currently sits on its board.
Pallavi Sharma is a multidisciplinary artist, and her research interest concerns Asian American women’s cultural production and activism. She is a board member of the Asian American Women Artists Association (AAWAA) and founder and director of ‘Inner Eye Arts,’ a nonprofit arts organization working for the visibility of Asian American Artists in the SF Bay area. Her work has been exhibited in the US and abroad, including at the Queens Museum of the Arts, the Elizabeth Foundation for the Arts, and Aicon Gallery in New York, the Bishop Museum in Hawaii, and the Taubman Museum of Art in Virginia, among others. Her works explore the theme of marginalization, patriarchy, misogyny, and examines the notions of memory. Pallavi received her BFA and MFA (Art History) from the Faculty of Fine Arts Baroda, and Ph.D. from the National Museum Institute of History of Art, Museology, and Conservation, New Delhi, India. She presently lives and works in San Ramon, CA. (Source: https://www.pallavisharma.com/)
Tomye Neal Madison has obtained her BFA, MFA, and many life skills. Since 1972, her Graphics and Fine Art have been commissioned, published in magazines, have become creations of public art, and collected. Her Artworks as she speaks of them “are on a scale of lighthearted to puncturing comfort zones”. Her artistic prowess includes calligraphy, framing, ink rendering, mold making, painting, stained glass, and fused slumped glass. Tomye has ventured into experimental approaches with combining upcycled glass- including wine bottles, beer bottles, stained glass and bulls-eye glass. This unique combination emerges as ‘what-nots’ for interior objects to adorn windows, sculptural portraits, wearable art, and more. She has received several Municipal and Individual grants along the way. As a Visual Arts Specialist she teaches youth and adults, especially teachers. What Tomye shares as an exceptionally talented Visual Artist, Arts Program Administrator, Exhibition Curator, and Workshop Facilitator are distinctive viewpoints that enrich the universal lexicon. She continues contributing to the community as a member of various art organizations, as an Advisory Committee Member assisting non-profits and a Mentor of Artists (Source: https://sfwomenartists.org/artist/tomye-neal-madison/).

Minhwa Family Workshop
2022-07-16 14:00 - 17:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
Korean Traditional Folk Art, Minhwa, is a type of painting that became popular during the Joseon era. It was painted by unknown artisans, who used symbolism to express their feelings of happiness, anger, and love in everyday life. Minhwa paintings are typically used to decorate palaces and homes and to celebrate joyful family occasions. Minhwa artist and Korean Center, Inc’s Executive Director Kate Nam will lead the Minhwa Family Workshops. Participants will learn how to paint the peony, typically a symbol of wealth. Once finished, participants will have their own Minhwa work to decorate their homes with!
This workshop will be held twice, the first at Oakland Asian Cultural Center on July 16 at 2pm. The second workshop will be held at the Korean Center on July 23 at 2pm. The workshop is geared towards participants ages 7 and up. Click here to view KCI’s workshop event registration page.
WORKSHOP FEE* (includes all workshop materials)

$25 – Regular Admission (all ages)

This event is presented in partnership with the Korean Center, Inc.
Refund Policy: For a full refund, please request at least 5 days prior to the workshop date. Cancellations made less than 5 days before the workshop date are non-refundable.
*Fees and donations help cover program expenses and sustain OACC’s capacity to bring high-quality workshops to our audiences.

"Lil Tokyo Reporter" 10th Anniversary Screening
2022-07-30 15:00 - 17:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
In celebration of the 10th anniversary of “Lil Tokyo Reporter,” OACC presents a special screening followed by a film talk with director Jeffrey Chin. He will be joined by Chris Tashima who plays Sei Fujii in the film and others. Lil Tokyo Reporter is a film inspired by the True Story of Civil Rights Leader Sei Fujii, a man who protected the livelihood of the Japanese American people from 1903-1954. It has been screened at U.S. Consulate in Seoul, Beijing, and Tokyo.
More speakers to be confirmed.

About the Speakers

Jeffery Chin

Jeffrey directs narratives on early immigrant communities in the United States. He is best known for his award-winning dramatic short LIL TOKYO REPORTER, which received over 21 film awards and screened internationally at the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, Beijing, and Tokyo. He was mentored by late Director John Singleton. Jeffrey also has been featured on Good Morning America and at the Walt Disney Family Museum, edited an Emmy-Nominated SFGovTV Programs, VFX Supervised Student Academy Award Finalist Drone. He directed heist film in India “Mosagallu” starring actors Suniel Shetty and Kajal Aggarawal, and also published his first award-winning book A REBEL’S OUTCRY.

Chris Tashima

Chris Tashima has been an actor and director for over 35 years. His projects have primarily focused on the history and experience of Japanese American community and family. Award-winning independent films he has starred in include Lily Mariye’s Model Minorty, Under the Blood Red Sun from producer Dana Satler Hankins, and Stacey Hayashi’s Go For Broke. He can soon be seen in No No Girl from writer/director Paul Goodman. He was honored to play Sei Fujii in Jeffrey Gee Chin’s historical short film, Lil Tokyo Reporter, and is excited to now see Fujii’s full life-story being told with Chin’s publication of “A Rebel’s Outcry” from the Little Tokyo Historical Society. Tashima won an Academy Award® for Visas and Virtue, a short film he directed and stars in as Holocaust rescuer Chiune Sugihara. In 2006 he was the recipient of the Japanese American of the Biennium, awarded by the National JACL.

"Painting The Streets" Book Talk [POSTPONED]
2022-08-06 15:00 - 16:30 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
Painting the Streets: Oakland Uprising in the Time of Rebellion expresses solidarity with the national and international protests against the police brutality/murder of Black people and systemic-institutional racism in the US with Oakland murals as a local reflection of this historic moment.
This oversized art book will impress this through an introduction by Alicia Garza; essays by Robin D. G, Kelley, Mizan Alkebulan and the Black Cultural Zone team, Greg Morozumi and Leslie Lopez, and Cat Brooks; an interview with Emory Douglas by Tongo Eisen-Martin, mural art (full list of participating artists coming soon!), photos by myriad photographers (including JJ Harris and Rohan DaCosta), and poetry expressing self-determination and the continuum of the Black liberation struggle by Umar Bin Hassan, from The Last Poets, Tureeda Mikell, Ayodele Nzinga (Oakland’s first Poet Laureate), James Cagney, Tongo Eisen-Martin, Arnoldo Garcia, Sizwe, Miasha Quint, Nia McAllister, and Amiri Baraka.
PURCHASE THE BOOK.
All proceeds from the book will go into a separate bank account overseen by 5 community members and proceeds will go toward visual arts programs in Oakland flatlands’ schools.
Black Lives Matter! Black Power Matters!

Information about event speakers and artists to come.

Stories From My Mother's House
2022-09-01 - 2022-09-25 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
Growing up in East Oakland influenced Stan Chan’s art. Stories From My Mother’s House is a curated show featuring artifacts, drawings, and writings on his childhood memories, family gossips, and everyday stories. His parents were able to buy a house in the 1950’s and each plexiglass-wooden box contains items that had been accumulating in the nooks and crannies of their house. Enjoy a reflection of a lived experience through the art of Stan Chan.

Stop the Violence - Solidarity Now! Forum 1
2022-09-10 10:30 - 12:30 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
The “Stop the Violence – Solidarity Now!” project is a BAMC social action initiative launched in response to the violence against the Asian community, particularly those attacked by African American males in Oakland’s Chinatown.
The way these incidents have been covered in the media has created a divide among African Americans and Asians throughout Oakland, particularly in Chinatown and surrounding communities. In an effort to take positive strategic action to address the severed relationship between African Americans and Asians in Oakland, BAMC is dedicated to leading efforts that build positive relations between these two racial groups.

Forum 1 – Continuing the discussion regarding the need for Black and Asian Solidarity
Join us Saturday, September 10, 2022 from 10:30 – 12:30p in-person at the Oakland Asian Cultural Center
Forum 1 will feature spoken word/poetry from Oakland Youth Poet Laureates, a panel discussion, and an open forum.

Press Play: Exhibition - Raising Mental Health Awareness
2022-10-01 - 2022-10-31 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
In honor of Mental Illness Awareness Week (Oct 3-9) and World Mental Health Day (Oct 10), Oakland Asian Cultural Center (OACC) is exhibiting award-winning mental health comic Press Play to spark meaningful conversations and combat stigmas around mental health.
Co-presented by ARTogether and Asian Health Services, in collaboration with community partners NAMI San Francisco Mental Illness (NAMI) San Francisco, Justice Murals, and Lincoln Summer Nights, the month-long event will feature a family-friendly collaborative painting activity and panel discussions with mental health professionals and local Bay Area writers who engage in mental health topics in their work. Local organizations offering mental health services are also tabling during key event dates to share resources and information.
Written by Edward Gunawan and illustrated by Elbert Lim, the comic is created especially to address the stigma of mental health in the Asian/Asian American as well as immigrant/refugee communities. Through a first-person narrative and evocative hand-drawn black-and-white illustrations, the comic follows an individual’s mental health journey in overcoming anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideation.

A recipient of “Speaking Out” Mind HK Media Award for challenging negative narratives around mental health and a mini-grant from ARTogether, the comic was also nominated for a Shorty Social Good Award and two Webby Awards. Translated into 6 languages including Chinese and Spanish, and later published as a chapbook by Sweet Lit, the comic has now been viewed by over 10,000 readers across 100 countries.
Exhibition is open from Oct 1st to 31st during OACC’s regular office hours, Wednesday – Saturday from 12pm to 5pm, or by appointment. Visit projectpressplay.com/exhibition for more information and RSVP below for these special events:

Oct 1, Sat @ 4:00 pm at Oakland Asian Cultural Center
Opening Reception (in-person / hybrid)
with a special reading by Bay Area writers Dawn Angelicca Barcelona and Hannah Wastyk

Oct 8, Sat @ 2:00 pm at Oakland Asian Cultural Center
Mental Health Professionals Discussion Panel (in-person / hybrid)
Featuring representatives from Asian Health Services and NAMI San Francisco

Oct 13, Thu @ 5:00 pm at Lincoln Square Park
Collaborative Painting with Justice Murals at Lincoln Summer Nights (in-person)
A fun family-friendly collaborative painting activity — supplies and materials provided, no experience necessary
Oct 29, Sat @ 2:00 pm at Oakland Asian Cultural Center
Writers Discussion Panel (in-person / hybrid)
Featuring Bay Area poets Michelle Lin and Christine No

26th Anniversary Gala — Celebrate Asian Love
2022-10-15 17:30 | Pacific Renaissance Plaza, 388 Ninth Street, Suite 290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States

OACC Gala 2022
2022-10-15 18:00 - 20:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
More details coming soon…

Community Ofrenda Building 2022: Celebrating Día De Los Muertos with OMCA
2022-10-21 11:00 - 2022-10-22 16:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
OACC is inviting you, our neighbors, to join in creating our 2022 Community Ofrenda! We are participating in the Oakland Museum of California’s Día De Los Muertos celebration and we want to include our friends and family in our collaborative ofrenda build.
OACC’s ofrenda is dedicated to those who have passed during the pandemic and those who had been victimized by anti-Asian hate. Those whose lives and deaths were politicized and propagandized. Those who had violence enacted upon them by a healthcare system, a social system, that saw humans as statistics. We center their personhood and acknowledge who they were in life. Our neighbors, our friends, our family.

To participate, please bring a small framed photo of your loved one and/or commemorative objects. We will also be holding a tissue paper flower making activity during the building time. OACC will provide the ofrenda structure and fresh flowers, we’d love to see you there! Here is some more info on how to build an ofrenda to give you some ideas of what to bring!
This ofrenda will be displayed at the OMCA Día De Los Muertos celebration on October 23, 2022. For more info on that, click here.

Distant Journeys of Cultural Exchange
2022-11-04 - 2022-12-18 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
This exhibit highlights journeys of cultural exchange the indigenous people of Taiwan embarked on in the distant past and more contemporary times. Through object storytelling, viewers will begin by retracing prehistoric canoe-based trade networks that once flourished between peoples of Taiwan and Southeast Asia, and how Southeast Asian artist & curator Anthonie Tumpag draws upon these cultural connections through contemporary art.
This ancient spirit for cultural exchange continues today through the ATAYAL organization’s Indigenous Bridges Youth Ambassador Program.
Over several years, indigenous delegates from Taiwan participated in the “Tribal Canoe Journeys” in the US, an annual event that also retraces traditional migration and trade routes of Pacific Northwest tribal groups. The exhibit concludes with photographs highlighting these past events from 2018-2019. They capture the partnership and camaraderie that grew between the Taiwan delegates, their Native American host canoe family from the Nisqually Tribe of Olympia, Washington, and other fellow participants.
The exhibit was curated by Anthonie Tumpag in collaboration with members and friends of ATAYAL.

There will be a Cultural Bazaar and a special panel discussion on Saturday, November 12, 2022. The Bazaar will be held from 12pm – 4pm and the panel will be from 2 pm – 3pm. Registration not required but appreciated!

Special thanks to Gerald Santos for coordinating the exhibit’s interactive and cross-cultural opening reception.

Uncommon Ground: Write Now! SF Bay's New Anthology
2022-11-05 14:00 - 16:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
READINGS • VISUAL ART • WRITING WORKSHOP
Featuring readings by Avotcja, C. K. Itamura, Tureeda Mikell, Shizue Seigel, Kimi Sugioka, and Janice Hom. Artwork by Adrian Arias, Salma Arastu, Lorraine Bonner, Mark Harris, Wanda Sabir, Josué Rojas, Twin Walls Mural Company. Followed by an interactive creative writing workshop with the audience.
Co-sponsored by Eastwind Books of Berkeley and by UC Berkeley’s Public Service Center and the Asian American and Asian Diasporic Studies Department.
Writers (l-r): Avotcja, C. K. Itamura, Tureeda Mikell, Shizue Seigel, Kimi Sugioka, and Janice Hom.

Book Cover
Uncommon Ground:
BIPOC Journeys to Creative Activism
Edited by Shizue Seigel
285 pages (including 114 pages of color artwork) • Pease Press $22.95
More about the book: www.writenowsf.com/uncommon-ground
Prose, poetry and visual art by 22 leading Bay Area writers and artists of color responding to these questions:
• What inspired you to pursue art, creative writing, and activism?
• What are your cultural, spiritual, and community values?
• What sustains your creative practice in turbulent times?
Avotcja, an award-winning poet with Puerto Rican roots, is a multi-instrumentalist and FM radio DJ airing weekly on KPFA and KPOO. She has featured at AfroSolo, San Francisco’s Carnival, Asian-American Jazz Festival, and more. She has been widely published in English and Spanish in the USA, Mexico, and Europe. www.avotcja.org
C. K. Itamura is a fourth-generation Japanese American whose conceptual, visual, performance, and community art is fused with cultural traditions of observation, contemplation, and expressive imagination. She is a recipient of the 2019 Discovered Award for Emerging Artists from Sonoma Creative and multiple Artist-in-Residencies. www.peachfarmstudio.net
Tureeda Mikell, author of Synchronicity: The Oracle of Sun Medicine, is a Berkeley native and foster care survivor. Deeply engaged with community, she volunteered at the Black Panther Clinic and later produced more than 70 classroom anthologies by at-risk students. A UC Bay Area Writing Project Fellow, she is currently Poet-in-Residence at the Museum of the African Diaspora. https://treeoflifefound.com/
Shizue Seigel, Japanese American poet, memoirist, and visual artist, has contributed poetry, prose, and art to many anthologies and journals Her seven books, including the Write Now! anthologies, have been supported by the California Arts Council, California State Library, San Francisco Arts Commission, Zellerbach Foundation and others. www.shizueseigel.com
Kimi Sugioka is the poet laureate of Alameda, California, whose work appears in numerous anthologies. A mother, educator, and poet with an MFA from Naropa University in Boulder, she has published two books of poetry; the newest of which is Wile & Wing, published by Manic D Press. Sugioka believes that creating community through art is a revolutionary act.
Janice Hom, born and raised in San Francisco, has been writing for a number of Bay Area publications, including the East West Journal, the San Francisco Journal, North Beach Now, and Asian Week. In addition, she has been a community volunteer for a number of non-profit organizations.

CRESCENCIANA Book Talk: Connecting with our Ancestors’ Narratives
2022-12-03 14:00 - 15:30 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
Back in San Jose, Lola and I started drawing and painting together. I’d read somewhere that art was a form of therapy with seniors, so we gave it a try. Lola made watercolor paintings, and when they dried I drew her memories on top of them. We called ourselves The Lola x Kenneth Collaboration. When Lola passed in 2016, she left me with the rest of her paintings, and in doing so, she left me with a purpose. I would finish everything she started. I promised.
When Kenneth Tan started this oral history project for his Asian American Studies class at UC Berkeley, he had no idea he would ultimately create a memoir and art book with his grandmother, Crescenciana Tan. In Crescenciana, Kenneth weaves together their artwork, conversations, and memoirs to tell his grandmother’s life story. With heart and humor, he recounts Crescenciana’s childhood antics in the Philippines, her fall on black ice outside of a church in Canada, and her show-stopping civics test performance that earned her citizenship in the United States. At the same time, he revisits her memories as a survivor of World War II and the Japanese occupation of the Philippines, and he reflects on his own continuing grief since her passing. Crescenciana is an art book and memoir about carrying and commemorating your family’s stories. It’s a book about moving forward without leaving your loved ones behind.
Join us for this event celebrating intergenerational connection and ancestral narratives with author Kenneth Tan, an author Q&A moderated by East Wind Books’ Harvey Dong, and a musical performance from fellow author Conrad J. Benedicto and his Kulintang band, Kulintang Dialect. This event is brought to you in partnership with Eastwind Books of Berkeley, Asian American and Asian Diaspora Studies Department at UC Berkeley, and Asian Pacific American Student Development Office at UC Berkeley.

Author Bios:
Kenneth Tan is a second-generation Filipino American living in his hometown of San Jose. He has shared stories about his grandmother, Crescenciana Tan, on NPR and StoryCorps, and he is a recipient of the Leigh Weimers Emerging Artists Award. Kenneth enjoys boba, board games, and three-item lists. Crescenciana is his first book.
Conrad J. Benedicto a teacher, author, and kulintang musician who was born in the Philippines and immigrated to the United States at age thirteen. He studied with kulintang master artist Danongan Kalanduyan from 1997 until his passing in 2016, including as his apprentice through the Alliance for California Traditional Arts’ apprenticeship program in 2007 and again in 2013. In 2018, Conrad received an individual artist grant from the San Francisco Arts Commission to compose original kulintang music for his project, “Kulintang Dialect.” He teaches social studies, environmental education, and kulintang music at Balboa High School in San Francisco. Musalaya’s Gift, Conrad’s first novel, was published by KulArts in 2021. Kulintang Dialect is a traditional five instrument kulintang band that performs the traditional kulintang music passed down by the late Master Danongan Kalanduyan with fidelity, while also exploring with joy and courage how this music can express itself through new ways that are nourished by our own specific context on this American soil.

Bandung To The Bay: Intersections of Solidarity
2023-01-17 - 2023-02-24 | CA
Part of OACC’s Open E.A.R.S. for Change series
In partnership with the EastSide Arts Alliance and the Joyce Gordon Gallery, the Oakland Asian Cultural Center presents the reinstallation of “Bandung To The Bay,” a showcase of the history of Black and Asian solidarity across various movements. This exhibition consists of historical, archival documents connected to the International Bandung Conference and Bay Area Asian & Black activist solidarity movements like the Black Panther Party of Self-Defense, as well as artwork from 12 jury selected local artists, including additional works from the community.

Lunar New Year x Black History Month: Celebration of Black & Asian Solidarity
2023-02-04 11:00 - 16:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
You can livestream this event by clicking here.
LANGUAGE AND ACCESSIBILITY
We will have interpreters for ASL translation during the performances in the auditorium. There will be accessible seating for any wheelchair users. If you have any accessibility needs, please email programs@oacc.cc or let an OACC staff member know at the event.
Volunteering
Interested in volunteering for the event? Sign up here!

PEONY AMOUR - Sultry Ecstasy and Frosty Agony: Book Talk with Raymond Chong
2023-02-11 13:30 - 15:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
Raymond Douglas Chong (Zhang Weiming) was born and raised in Los Angeles, and is sixth generation Chinese American. His family roots in America extend back to California Gold Rush (1849 to 1855), First Transcontinental Railroad (1865 to 1869), Boston Chinatown (1891 to 1926), Imperial Restaurant at Central Square in Cambridge (1923 to 1936), Kubla Khan Theater Restaurant at San Francisco Chinatown (1946 to 1950), Far East Café at Little Tokyo in Los Angeles (1950 to 1974). He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Southern California and a master’s degree in Civil Engineering from San Jose State University. His prolific career has transcended the norm and speaks to his many talents, from being a distinguished professor to staff writer for AsAmNews, an Asian American news company. As President of Generations, LLC, in the creative realm, Raymond tells stories, pens poems, composes lyrics, makes films, and drafts articles.
Join us in this book talk that will embody his family history and poetic journey, while celebrating his latest release, PEONY AMOUR: Sultry Ecstasy and Frosty Agony. This poetic tale takes audiences along on an enthusiastic voyage between a Chinese lady, the peony, and an American Chinese gentleman, the dragon, during the Year of Horse. It is an anthology of eighty-eight love poems that vividly describe true amour in the dragon’s mind, soul, and heart. The myriad moods of love range: from the illusion of budding love; through the passion of blooming love; to the delusion of withering love. Among these love poems, Raymond applies love motifs in Chinese culture. He craves the peony as a beautiful flower with sensuality. His love poems are the synthesis of Sun and Moon, East and West, China and America.
Parental advisory: adult themes discussed.

MY BOYFRIEND APOCALYPSE: Chapbook Reading and Writing Workshop with antmen pimentel mendoza
2023-02-17 17:00 - 19:30 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
To celebrate Valentine’s Day and the release of antmen pimentel mendoza’s chapbook MY BOYFRIEND APOCALYPSE, join the poet in an evening of queer and trans love poetry. antmen will host a writing exercise and workshop including time to share your newly written work! Arrive with a notebook and an open mind and heart. The writing workshop will be followed by a feature set performance by antmen.
Artist Bio: antmen pimentel mendoza (she, he) is the author of the chapbook MY BOYFRIEND APOCALYPSE (Nomadic Press, 2023). antmen is a writer, the Acting Co-Director of the Multicultural Community Center at UC Berkeley, and a student at the Rainier Writing Workshop at Pacific Lutheran University. His poetry is published or forthcoming in Underblong, Peach Mag, A Velvet Giant, and Gigantic Sequins. Find antmen online at @antmenismagic and antmenpm.com or riding her bike in Oakland, CA.
This event is co-sponsored by Eastwind Books of Berkeley and Kearny Street Workshop.

Day of Remembrance Community Map Project (Ongoing)
2023-02-18 12:00 - 2023-05-01 12:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
Day of Remembrance Community Map Project by Yoko Oji Kikuchi:
This project is in honor of Day of Remembrance on February 19th, which marks the day in 1942 when President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, giving the U.S. Army the authority to forcibly remove and incarcerate Americans of Japanese ancestry residing on the West Coast during WWII. Every February, the Japanese American community commemorates Executive Order 9066 as a reminder of the impact the incarceration experience has had on their families, community, and our country. It is an opportunity to educate others on the fragility of civil liberties in times of crisis, and the importance of remaining vigilant in protecting the rights and freedoms of all.
OACC has commissioned Yoko Oji Kikuchi to create a map of Oakland that highlights the vibrant pre-WWII Japanese American community residing in Oakland prior to their detention, including Japanese American businesses, art and cultural sites, and community centers. Be sure to pick up a copy of the community map at OACC during our business hours!

Day of Remembrance Community Map Opening Reception:
On Saturday, February 18th, 12pm-2pm PT, OACC held an opening reception of our Day of Remembrance Community Map Project featuring a performance from Emeryville Taiko and a community panel with Robert Kikuchi-Yngojo, Jun Hamamoto, and Yoko Oji Kikuchi about the role of art, memory, and place in the movement for civil rights.

About the Panelists:

Stay tuned for more information about accompanying public programs. If you have any interest in contributing to the project, email programs@oacc.cc.
This project is funded through the California State Library Civil Liberties Grant.

Current Exhibition: Li Ching World
2023-03-03 17:00 - 2023-04-22 21:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
Li Ching World can be viewed at OACC during OACC’s business hours (Wednesday – Saturday, 12 PM-5 PM) starting March 1st, 2023 through April 22nd, 2023.

As an immigrant Asian–American woman artist, Li Ching Accurso wants her art to be an encouraging message to the Asian American community and beyond. Her work elevates the voices and perspectives of the community, showcasing the creativity and resilience of Asian Americans. While Li Ching works in the western traditional medium of oil on canvas, one can see the Asian sense of beauty in the subject of landscape, floral compositions, and poetic representations of moonlight. These oil paintings, ceramics, and watercolors serve as a celebration of the Asian community’s history and a testament to its perseverance, inspiring others to take pride in their cultural roots and to keep their traditions alive. Further, her life as an Asian–American woman artist has been a faith journey; her identity is in Christ. Beauty, hope, joy, wonder, and curiosity are the aims in my art and everyday life. Li Ching’s art work not only adds to the broader cultural discourse but also provides a platform for underrepresented voices to be heard.

More about Li Ching:
Li Ching Accurso was born in Taiwan in 1962.  Her family immigrated to the United States when she was fourteen years old.  She attended UC Berkeley for both a BA in Fine Art and an MFA in Painting.  She was awarded the prestigious Eisner Price in Painting at Berkeley when she received her Master’s degree and soon after was a Fulbright Scholar, 1991-1992.  She has been an Art Professor at Columbia College in Sonora, CA since 1995.
She desires to share her joy and passion in Art.  Li wishes to celebrate life and bring beauty to all who encounter her art works.
For inquiry please contact (209)588-1530 or accursol@yosemite.edu

2023 Virtual Community Night Market
2023-03-15 12:00 - 2023-04-30 15:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
The Oakland Asian Cultural Center invites local business and organizations to take part in our upcoming Virtual Community Night Market. The Night Market will be a virtual “one-stop-shop” marketplace featuring Oakland/Bay Area-based and Oakland values-inspired businesses, including BIPOC businesses and artists. We aim to engage a wide consumer audience of individuals interested in API and/or other cultural communities from around the Bay and across the country. The Virtual Community Night Market will serve as an online directory, which will be active from early March 2023, to April 30, 2023, spanning the length of time between our Lunar New Year Programming and Asian Pacific New Year in April.
The Night Market will be widely marketed through our website and social media platforms and will be shared amongst our 4,000+ contacts, community partners, and followers.
If you are interested in participating in the virtual night market, please fill out this form. Note that there is a vendor acceptance fee as detailed on the form. We will be reviewing and accepting vendors on a rolling basis once we begin receiving applications, with the site going live in early March.
Please email christophernakatsuka@oacc.cc if you have any questions. Thank you!
