Portraiture Now: Asian American Portraits of Encounter

August 12, 2011 through
October 14, 2012

11:30 a.m. — 7:00 p.m. daily

Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery
8th and F Streets NW
Washington, DC 20001
Google Map

Metro: Gallery Place-Chinatown
Free admission

This installation of Portraiture Now will feature seven artists, each of whom will show several works. The artists are:

Cindy Hwang (CYJO), New York, Beijing
Hye Yeon Nam, Atlanta and New York
Shizu Saldamando, Los Angeles
Roger Shimomura, Lawrence, KS
Satomi Shirai, New York
Tam Tran, Memphis, TN
Hong Chun Zhang, Lawrence, KS

The Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery (NPG) and the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Program have collaborated to mount the Smithsonian’s first major showcase of contemporary Asian American portraiture. Through the work of seven artists from across the country and around the world, the exhibition offers thought-provoking interpretations of the Asian American experience and representations against and beyond the stereotypes that have obscured the complexity of being Asian in America.

Hallway at NPG where the Asian American Portraits of Encounter exhibition begins.

Hallway at NPG where the exhibition begins.

To visit the exhibition, go to the museum lobby located on 8th and F Streets NW. The exhibition is located in the first hallway on your right.

“The Portraiture Now exhibition series showcases innovative trends in portraiture,” said Martin Sullivan, director of the National Portrait Gallery. “Portraiture Now: Asian American Portraits of Encounter is a provocative and pathbreaking show that affirms the complex realities of Asian identity in today’s culture.”

“These exceptional works are portals into the souls of the American experience, world cultures and their intersections,” said Konrad Ng, director of the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Program. “Asian American Portraits of Encounter provides engaging points of view that will enrich the understanding of Asian Pacific America.”

Click to visit NPG's website for the exhibit

Related Links

News and Press

01/09/12 – Arts Observer – With Photos and Testimonials, CYJO’s Kyopo Project Documents Korean Identity
10/12/11 – PBS Newshour – Negotiating Asian-American Identity Through Portraiture
09/23/11 – Voice of America – Asian-American Artists Explore Their Identity (with video)
09/19/11 – Honolulu Civil Beat – What Does It Mean To Be Asian American?
09/16/11 – ArtsPost by The Washington Post – National Portrait Gallery presents upclose conversations with Asian American artists
09/13/11 – Smithsonian Magazine Blog, Around the Mall – The Different Faces of Korean Heritage at the Portrait Gallery
09/12/11 – Memphis Flyer – Q&A: Photographer, Tam Tran
09/02/11 – The Washington Post Going Out Guide – Editor’s Pick
08/16/11 – U.S. Embassy IIP Digital – Asian in America: New Smithsonian Exhibition Explores Identity
08/15/11 – The Huffington Post – Confronting Asian-American Stereotypes Through Art
08/12/11 – BBC America – Artists explore the Asian-American experience (with video)
08/11/11 – The Washington Post – Exhibition Review by Jacqueline Trescott
08/09/11 – KoreAm August Issue – We Are Kyopo

Comments 9 Comments
Categories Art, Exhibitions, General APA
Author Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center

9 Responses to “Portraiture Now: Asian American Portraits of Encounter”

Meggan Ellingboe (@megganellingboe) August 9, 2011 at 12:40 pm #

Would love for this to extend through the end of Oct! I will be in DC for the Marine Corp Marathon and would love to see this.

Reply

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