SLAYSIAN is a celebration—a celebrAsian, if you will—of local Asian American artists.
Artists on the Lam invites Asian American artists in Chicago and the larger Midwest area to submit work for this group exhibition, opening on Friday, March 20, 2020.
Created by artist and independent curator Jenny Lam, SLAYSIAN is the long-awaited follow-up to 2016’s acclaimed LEXICON, which featured 46 artists and was itself the successor to 2012’s acclaimed I CAN DO THAT, which was named the audience choice for “Best Art Exhibit” in the 20th anniversary edition of NewCity’s Best of Chicago issue.
Local Asian American artists working in all mediums—painting, illustration, photography, sculpture, mixed media, multimedia, installation, textiles, you name it—are welcome to apply.
In addition to visual artists, SLAYSIAN also welcomes poets, writers, storytellers, performance artists, and performers of all types.
The art’s subject matter can be anything and everything. There isn’t necessarily a specific theme; this is above all a showcase of local contemporary Asian American talent. We inherently defy stereotypes and break boundaries simply by making art.
(In other words, this isn’t a show where the art needs to be about being Asian in America. Of course, if that’s what your art is about, then feel free to submit that!)
Eligibility:
- You’re an Asian American artist. (It should go without saying, but this means all Asian ethnicities, including South Asian and Middle Eastern.)
- You consider yourself a local artist. (Chicago, Chicagoland, Illinois, the Midwest, etc.) Folks outside of this area may apply too, but note that priority will be given to the Chicagoans and Midwesterners. Those of you who got your start here but have moved away are also welcome (we miss you!).
To apply:
- Name
- Address
- Phone number
- Website and/or social media
- Title, medium, and dimensions of artwork submission(s)
- How you heard about SLAYSIAN
Step 2: Attach the following to your email:
- Artist statement and/or bio
- Résumé or CV
- Up to 10 images of your artwork in .jpg format (or clips for video, performance, and multimedia artists; or pages of writing for poets, writers, and storytellers)
Step 3: Application fee of $25:
(This goes solely to Jenny Lam and not the nonprofit gallery, and helps to cover the costs of putting the show together. Note that this is non-refundable. No one will be turned away for lack of funds, so if you need assistance, email an inquiry before applying. (Or, if you would like to make a donation to help fund other artists, send an email!))
The application deadline for SLAYSIAN is Friday, 21 February 2020, 11:59pm.
All steps must be completed. Unfinished applications will not be reviewed.
Please do not inquire regarding the status of your submission. All applicants will be notified about a week after the deadline.
Selected artists:
- Will be responsible for transporting their work to the exhibition space.
- Should plan on attending the exhibition’s opening reception on Friday, 20 March 2020.
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About the curator:
Jenny Lam is a self-taught artist, independent curator, writer, and traveler. She is the Chicago-born Chinese American daughter of immigrants from Hong Kong, and she graduated from Columbia University in New York City, where she served as the President of Postcrypt, Columbia’s undergraduate art gallery. After graduation, she returned to the Windy City where she founded Artists on the Lam, which was named “Best Visual Arts Blog” in the Chicago Reader’s Best of Chicago issue. Her interactive show I CAN DO THAT was named the audience choice for “Best Art Exhibit” in the 20th anniversary edition of NewCity’s Best of Chicago issue. Her own artwork has been exhibited at the Chicago Cultural Center and at the Chicago Public Library, and she is the creator of Dreams of a City, an ongoing city-wide public art and mapping project for which she received the Individual Artists Program Grant from the City of Chicago’s Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events. Jenny has curated at the Zhou B Art Center and guest judged shows at Line Dot Editions and Water Street Studios. She has written for such publications as Time Out Chicago and Sixty Inches From Center and been published in the graphic novel anthology New Frontiers. She has conducted Visiting Artist Workshops at the Chicago Children’s Museum; spoken on panels at Facebook Chicago and Startup Art Fair; performed at 20x2 Chicago; and been featured on The Huffington Post, WBEZ, Crain’s Chicago Business, DNAinfo Chicago, Chicagoist, Gapers Block, Gozamos, and more. Her photography—all shot on her phone—has been featured on Guardian Travel, Buzzfeed, Atlas Obscura, Mashable, Matador Network, Folk Magazine, Choose Chicago, Enjoy Illinois, Hong Kong Tourism Board, RedEye Chicago, Untapped Cities, Tiny Atlas Quarterly, and more. She is also the 1st Prize Winner of the National Park Service’s Centennial Project.
Jenny Lam is a self-taught artist, independent curator, writer, and traveler. She is the Chicago-born Chinese American daughter of immigrants from Hong Kong, and she graduated from Columbia University in New York City, where she served as the President of Postcrypt, Columbia’s undergraduate art gallery. After graduation, she returned to the Windy City where she founded Artists on the Lam, which was named “Best Visual Arts Blog” in the Chicago Reader’s Best of Chicago issue. Her interactive show I CAN DO THAT was named the audience choice for “Best Art Exhibit” in the 20th anniversary edition of NewCity’s Best of Chicago issue. Her own artwork has been exhibited at the Chicago Cultural Center and at the Chicago Public Library, and she is the creator of Dreams of a City, an ongoing city-wide public art and mapping project for which she received the Individual Artists Program Grant from the City of Chicago’s Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events. Jenny has curated at the Zhou B Art Center and guest judged shows at Line Dot Editions and Water Street Studios. She has written for such publications as Time Out Chicago and Sixty Inches From Center and been published in the graphic novel anthology New Frontiers. She has conducted Visiting Artist Workshops at the Chicago Children’s Museum; spoken on panels at Facebook Chicago and Startup Art Fair; performed at 20x2 Chicago; and been featured on The Huffington Post, WBEZ, Crain’s Chicago Business, DNAinfo Chicago, Chicagoist, Gapers Block, Gozamos, and more. Her photography—all shot on her phone—has been featured on Guardian Travel, Buzzfeed, Atlas Obscura, Mashable, Matador Network, Folk Magazine, Choose Chicago, Enjoy Illinois, Hong Kong Tourism Board, RedEye Chicago, Untapped Cities, Tiny Atlas Quarterly, and more. She is also the 1st Prize Winner of the National Park Service’s Centennial Project.
Curator’s note about the venue:
SLAYSIAN will be located in the 5,000 sq. ft. gallery of
3219 S. Morgan (at 32nd Pl.)
Chicago, IL 60608
In the heart of the burgeoning arts hub of Bridgeport, CoPro is the cultural center that hosts such blockbuster shows as Typeforce (which will have its 11th annual iteration this February); houses non-profits like the Public Media Institute; and belongs to the same family that owns Maria’s Community Packaged Goods, Kimski, and Marz Brewing.
As an artist, I’ve been a fan of the gallery. As a Chinese American, and especially as a Chinese American whose grandparents survived the Japanese occupation halfway around the world, when I first heard the gallery’s name almost a decade ago, I was like, “…Wait. Really?” Yet whenever I went to events there, no one brought it up. Even though I assumed the name was ironic since the aforementioned family is Korean, I wondered if it was an elephant in the room or if people simply didn’t know. This being the West, where Asian history is often overlooked, I leaned towards the latter. And if you didn’t know, I implore you to read up on it.
As an independent curator, I’m able to choose among galleries for exhibitions I already have in mind. I’d been wanting to curate a group show of local Asian American artists for a long time. When CoPro announced a call for proposals this year, I immediately knew it would be the perfect venue for this show because of its size, atmosphere, location, and—above all—the opportunity to directly address the venue’s name for the first time in its decades-long history. (Very “if no one else can do it, I will” typical of an independent curator, I know.)
May this show serve as an anti-colonialist reclamation. A bunch of Asian American artists all in one place celebrating each other and ourselves—that is an act of resistance that is both historical and modern.
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