Digital Exhibition
SLAYSIAN is a celebration—a celebrAsian, if you will—of local Asian American artists.
Created by artist and independent curator Jenny Lam, SLAYSIAN is the long-awaited follow-up to 2016’s acclaimed LEXICON, which 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.
This group exhibition was originally scheduled to open on March 20, 2020, with a reception in a 5,000 sq. ft. space, free and open to the public. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the physical show has been postponed indefinitely. Most of the show’s 39 participating artists were discovered via an open call, and for some of them, SLAYSIAN would have been their first exhibition ever. All of these artists’ work deserves to be seen far and wide. So until things get better (have hope; they will), here’s a digital exhibition.
In the safety of your own home, and hopefully as some welcome respite in these frightening times, enjoy original art by talented local artists working across all media (painting, illustration, photography, sculpture, mixed media, multimedia, installation, textiles, and interactive art) and in all art forms (in addition to visual art, the reception was slated to feature live performances from poets, writers, and performance artists throughout the night). And the beauty of a virtual exhibition is there’s endless wall space; marvel at some bonus pieces that could not be displayed in the physical gallery.
May this endeavor also serve as an act of resistance. Supporting artists of Asian descent amidst a resurgence (because make no mistake; it is not new) of anti-Asian racism—that is solidarity.
-March 2020
Hailing from all over Chicago and the surrounding Midwest area, SLAYSIAN’s participating artists include:
Aimy Tien, Alex Kostiw, Bumjin Kim, Caroline Liu, Charlene Moy, Chris Gallevo, Cindi Jean Zdrinc, Dan Castranova, Dao Nguyen, Eddie Yeung, Eric Mah, Gabriel Mo, James J Gu, Joyce Jodie Kim, Juliann Wang, Julius Bautista, Justin Suico, Kaitlyn Hwang, Kiki Jia Qi Zhen, Kristel Becares, Kristin Anahit Cass, Mendy Kong, Muriel Christensen, My Linh Mac, Nayeon Yang, Nini Kao, Priscilla Huang, Rialin José, Richard Gessert, Robert Apolinar, Saebom Yang, Sam Riesmeyer, Sierra Tuazon, Sophie Pokorny, Stafford Smith, Susie Xiong (InsomniaBird), Tshab Her, Vivian Le, and Yuqing Zhu.