Asian American Arts Centre

The Asian American Arts Centre (AAAC) is a nonprofit cultural organization based in New York City’s Chinatown and Lower Manhattan. Established in 1974 as the Asian American Dance Theatre, it emerged during the Asian American movement and developed alongside other community, cultural, and political organizations associated with New York’s Basement Workshop. Its work has connected Asian and Asian American artistic practices with broader American contemporary art, neighborhood history, public education, and cultural preservation. The organization began with dance instruction and community performances. During its first years it operated through the New York Public Library before obtaining an artist-in-residence location at 26 Bowery in 1976. The site supported an expanding Saturday Community School for children and adults, while the organization’s Arts-in-Education program, launched in 1978, brought workshops and lectures to public schools across New York City. Although dance remained central through the early 1990s, AAAC increasingly built a visual-arts program that addressed the limited institutional visibility of Asian American artists. In 1982, the organization created the Asian American Artists’ Slide Archive, described as the first public archive of Asian American artists in the United States. That year it also began an annual Artists-in-Residence program and organized Eye to Eye, an exhibition and discussion bringing together East Coast Asian American visual artists, critics, and curators. The visual-arts activity initially operated through the Asian Arts Institute. In 1987, the organization adopted the name Asian American Arts Centre to represent its combined commitments to dance, visual art, traditional arts, archives, and education. AAAC’s activities have included contemporary-art exhibitions, folk-art presentations, performances, artist residencies, lectures, publications, recordings, school programs, community classes, and archival research. Its permanent collection, developed from 1989 onward, contains hundreds of contemporary Asian American artworks and traditional or folk-art objects. The Artists Archive documents Asian American visual culture in the United States from 1945 onward, with particular attention to New York and the East Coast as well as artists connected to the West Coast, Canada, Hawaii, and overseas communities. Its definition of Asia is broadly Pan-Asian, encompassing cultural traditions and influences extending from Afghanistan to Hawaii. The organization’s best-known historical projects include CHINA: June 4, 1989, an exhibition assembled in response to the Tiananmen Square crackdown. More than 300 artists contributed work, and the project was shown in New York and subsequently traveled to other American cities. Related performances and international presentations extended the project’s commemorative and political reach. AAAC also supported the recognition and documentation of traditional artists, including the Chinatown folk singer Ng Sheung Chi, known as Uncle Ng, whose work was recorded and published through the organization. Public funding reductions in the 1990s constrained AAAC’s programming. As a locally focused nonprofit that had relied substantially on public arts grants, it scaled back activities after reductions affecting federal, state, and city cultural funding. The Asian American Dance Theatre continued its artistic work under Eleanor Yung until 1992, while the broader organization increasingly emphasized exhibitions, folk arts, public education, and collection development. In 2010, AAAC moved from 26 Bowery to 111 Norfolk Street and no longer maintained a conventional gallery space. It continued to organize exhibitions, panels, educational activities, and collaborations at outside venues, while devoting greater attention to archival stewardship and historical documentation. Later projects included participation in the New Museum’s Ideas City Festival and the Art Across Archives collaboration with Think!Chinatown. The organization remains an active community-based arts and heritage institution whose role combines exhibition-making, preservation, public interpretation, and support for Asian American cultural history.

AAAC was founded in New York in 1974 as the Asian American Dance Theatre, a nonprofit community organization formed during the growth of the Asian American movement. It initially used the New York Public Library for dance classes and community presentations. In 1976, it obtained an artist-in-residence space on the third floor of 26 Bowery in Chinatown, where it established a Saturday Community School offering dance and later visual-art instruction. Its Arts-in-Education program began in 1978 and extended workshops and lectures into New York City public schools. A decisive institutional expansion occurred in 1982. AAAC established the Asian American Artists’ Slide Archive, began a nine-month Artists-in-Residence program, and presented Eye to Eye, its first visual-art exhibition. The exhibition brought together Asian American artists and commentators from the East Coast and helped establish a continuing contemporary-art program. The Asian Arts Institute subsequently organized several contemporary exhibitions and a folk-art exhibition each year. In 1985, AAAC added a Traditional Arts Presentation and Documentation program. The institution adopted the name Asian American Arts Centre in 1987 to encompass its dance company and visual-arts activities. The 1989 exhibition CHINA: June 4, 1989 became one of the organization’s most ambitious undertakings. Organized in response to the Tiananmen Square student massacre, it gathered work from more than 300 artists. The exhibition was shown at Blum Helman Gallery and PS1 in 1990 and later traveled to Austin, Cleveland, and Flint. A related 1990 program, A Memorial Performance of Music, Poetry and Dance, included the United States debut of work by Hong Kong’s Zuni Icosahedron. A selection of the exhibition was also shown in Hong Kong. AAAC later withdrew from a planned U.S. Senate exhibition after sponsors rejected two proposed works, choosing not to participate under those conditions. The Asian American Dance Theatre maintained an active performance program under artistic director Eleanor Yung through 1992. It presented annual New York seasons, touring programs, special performances, education activities, and a community school. Its repertoire included contemporary dance and traditional forms associated with China, Japan, Korea, India, the Philippines, Indonesia, Bali, and Pacific cultures. The company collaborated with choreographers, dancers, writers, and visual artists and performed at New York venues and educational institutions around the United States. Its Artists-in-Residence program supported 19 young artists before ending in 1993. After 1993, AAAC concentrated on four broad areas: contemporary Asian and Asian American exhibitions, folk-art research and presentation, public education, and permanent-collection development. Its exhibitions included emerging and established artists, while its folk-art work documented performance, music, calligraphy, seal carving, shadow puppetry, and other traditions. The organization helped bring national attention to Ng Sheung Chi, or Uncle Ng, a Toisanese muk’yu singer and composer in New York’s Chinatown. His work was documented through recordings, essays, and the 2000 publication Uncle Ng Comes to America. AAAC’s educational work included figure drawing, gallery talks, performances, tai chi, community classes, and school-based programming. Stories of Chinatown, conducted with M.S. 131 from 2001 to 2007, brought older Chinatown residents and students together to create ceramic mural portraits based on the seniors’ lives. The organization also published catalogs and documentation in print, video, and audio formats. Its ARTSPIRAL magazine ran annually from 1988 to 1993 and later returned as an online blog in 2008. Reduced public arts funding in the mid-1990s affected AAAC, as federal reductions also weakened related state and city grant resources. The organization reduced the scale of its programming from the mid-1990s into the late 2000s. In 2010 it moved from Bowery to 111 Norfolk Street and ceased operating a dedicated gallery. Its work thereafter emphasized off-site exhibitions and discussions, online communication, education, collection care, and archival documentation. Collaborations included the New Museum’s Ideas City Festival and Think!Chinatown’s 2018 Art Across Archives project. AAAC’s continuing identity rests on preserving Asian American visual culture while creating public encounters between Asian, Asian American, and wider artistic communities.

• 2018

  Art Across Archives collaboration

  [1]Asian American Arts Centreen.wikipedia.org

  With Think!Chinatown, AAAC presented a video introduction to artists in its archive.

• 2010

  Relocates to 111 Norfolk Street

  [1]Asian American Arts Centreen.wikipedia.org

  The organization left its Bowery gallery location and increased its focus on off-site and archival work.

• 2000

  Publishes Uncle Ng Comes to America

  [1]Asian American Arts Centreen.wikipedia.org

  AAAC documented the life and artistry of Chinatown folk singer Ng Sheung Chi.

• 1993

  Artists-in-Residence program concludes

  [1]Asian American Arts Centreen.wikipedia.org

  The nine-month residency program ended after supporting 19 young artists.

• 1989

  Begins CHINA: June 4, 1989

  [1]Asian American Arts Centreen.wikipedia.org

  AAAC initiated a major exhibition responding to the Tiananmen Square crackdown.

• 1987

  Renamed Asian American Arts Centre

  [1]Asian American Arts Centreen.wikipedia.org

  The new name reflected the organization’s broader arts and heritage mission.

• 1982

  Creates artists’ slide archive and launches visual-art programming

  [1]Asian American Arts Centreen.wikipedia.org

  AAAC established an archive, began artist residencies, and presented Eye to Eye.

• 1978

  Arts-in-Education program begins

  [1]Asian American Arts Centreen.wikipedia.org

  The organization began delivering workshops and lectures in New York City public schools.

• 1976

  Moves into 26 Bowery

  [1]Asian American Arts Centreen.wikipedia.org

  An artist-in-residence tenancy provided a Chinatown base for expanded classes and programming.

• 1974

  Founded as Asian American Dance Theatre

  [1]Asian American Arts Centreen.wikipedia.org

  The nonprofit began in New York with dance classes and community performances.

A community-rooted, Pan-Asian nonprofit arts center that links contemporary Asian and Asian American art with traditional culture, neighborhood history, public education, and long-term archival preservation.

• Archive · 1982

  Asian American Artists Archive

  A documentary and research resource recording Asian American visual culture in the United States from 1945 onward. It includes artists based in different American regions and selected artists in Canada, Hawaii, and overseas, as well as Asian artists active in the United States and other American artists substantially influenced by Asia.

• Art collection · 1989

  Permanent Collection

  A collection developed by the Arts Centre beginning in 1989, comprising hundreds of contemporary Asian American artworks and traditional or folk-art objects. Collection development became a central institutional priority as AAAC shifted toward preservation and historical documentation.

• Education program · 1978

  Arts-in-Education

  A school and community education program that provides workshops, lectures, and arts encounters. It began in New York public schools and later operated across public and private schools and community sites in the city’s five boroughs.

• Performance program · 1974

  Asian American Dance Theatre

  The organization’s original dance program presented contemporary and traditional Asian dance, annual New York seasons, touring performances, special events, and education activities. It remained active under Eleanor Yung through 1992.

• Publication · 1988

  ARTSPIRAL

  A publication addressing Asian American cultural issues in New York City and beyond. It appeared annually in print from 1988 to 1993 and was revived as an online blog in 2008.

• Community arts program · 2001

  Stories of Chinatown

  A collaboration with M.S. 131 that ran from 2001 to 2007. The project connected local seniors and young people through ceramic mural portraits depicting the seniors’ lives and experiences.

• 2018Art Across Archives

  United States

  In collaboration with Think!Chinatown, AAAC created a video introduction to 50 artists represented in its archive.

  Outcome. The project made archival material more accessible through a community-based digital presentation.

  Source
• 2001Stories of Chinatown

  United States

  AAAC and M.S. 131 brought Chinatown seniors and students together to create ceramic mural portraits based on the seniors’ lives.

  Outcome. The program continued through 2007 and linked intergenerational education with neighborhood cultural history.

  Source
• 1989CHINA: June 4, 1989

  United States · Hong Kong

  AAAC organized an artist-led exhibition in response to the Tiananmen Square crackdown. More than 300 artists contributed work; the exhibition was shown in New York, traveled to several U.S. cities, and was represented by a smaller selection in Hong Kong.

  Outcome. The project became a major example of AAAC’s ability to connect contemporary art, political memory, and transnational Asian and Asian American communities.

  Source

• 2010

  Moves away from a permanent gallery modelStrategy

  Background

  AAAC relocated from 26 Bowery to 111 Norfolk Street and no longer maintained a dedicated gallery space.

  Action taken

  It redirected more activity toward off-site exhibitions, panels, online education, collection management, and archival documentation.

  Aftermath

  The organization continued its cultural work through partnerships and public programs while strengthening its role as an archival and community resource.

  Source

• 1990

  Withdraws from planned U.S. Senate exhibitionOther

  Background

  Sponsors rejected two proposed artworks by Byron Kim and Zhang Hongtu for an exhibition related to former Chinese student leaders.

  Action taken

  AAAC declined to participate and withdrew the works it had planned to show.

  Aftermath

  The episode demonstrated the organization’s willingness to oppose exhibition conditions it viewed as incompatible with artistic or political representation.

  Source

• 1987

  Adopts a broader organizational identityStrategy

  Background

  The organization had expanded beyond dance into contemporary visual art, folk arts, archives, and education.

  Action taken

  It changed its name from Asian American Dance Theatre to Asian American Arts Centre.

  Aftermath

  The new identity accommodated the institution’s multidisciplinary programming and preservation mission.

  Source

• 2018

  Art Across Archives introduces artists from the AAAC archive[1]Asian American Arts Centreen.wikipedia.org

  Campaign

  Working with Think!Chinatown, AAAC produced a video introduction to 50 artists represented in its archive.

• 2010

  Asian American Arts Centre relocates to Norfolk Street[1]Asian American Arts Centreen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  AAAC moved from its long-standing Bowery premises to 111 Norfolk Street and shifted away from operating a permanent gallery space.

• 1989

  CHINA: June 4, 1989 responds to the Tiananmen Square crackdown[1]Asian American Arts Centreen.wikipedia.org

  Campaign · Other

  AAAC organized a large artist-driven exhibition responding to the June 4, 1989 violence in Beijing. The project was presented in New York and later traveled to several American cities.

• 1987

  Asian American Arts Centre adopts its current name[1]Asian American Arts Centreen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  The organization changed its name from Asian American Dance Theatre to Asian American Arts Centre as its visual-arts, traditional-arts, archival, and educational work expanded.

• 1974

  Asian American Arts Centre founded as Asian American Dance Theatre[1]Asian American Arts Centreen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  The organization began in New York as a nonprofit community arts group focused initially on dance classes and performances.

1. 1Asian American Arts Centreen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Asian American Arts Centre official websiteartspiral.org