Contemporary Art

The exhibition brings together artists Michael Massenburg, Aiseborn, and Mr. B Baby to explore the intersections of family,
culture, and community. Curated by Guillermo Aviles-Rodriguez, PhD., the works will be on view Wednesday to Saturday, 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., from April 13 to August 2024, with a reception/artist talk and performance by Nedra Wheeler Trio taking place Sunday, June 9 at 1:00 p.m. Admission is free.

Cover image: Helping Families Grow, by Michael Massenburg, Aiseborn, and Mr. B Baby located at Kaiser Permanente Watts Counseling and Learning Center

Mark Bradford’s 150 Portrait Tone, a mural-size composition that contains elements of both abstraction and realism, is based on an idea for a work that the artist conceived after the fatal shooting of Philando Castile by a police officer in Saint Paul, Minnesota, in July 2016. Castile, a nutrition services supervisor at an elementary school, was shot after being pulled over in his car—an incident that was livestreamed on Facebook by Castile’s girlfriend, Diamond Reynolds, who was sitting in the passenger seat next to him.

The painting features excerpts of Reynolds’s dialogue from the video. The title, 150 Portrait Tone, refers to the name and color code of the pink acrylic used throughout the painting. Like the now-obsolete “flesh” crayon in the Crayola 64 box (renamed “peach” in 1962), the color “portrait tone” carries inherent assumptions about who, exactly, is being depicted. In the context of Bradford’s painting, the title presents a sobering commentary on power and representation.

Mineo Mizuno’s site-specific sculpture Homage to Nature, crafted from fallen timber gathered in the forests of the Sierra Nevada, explores the fragility of the Earth’s ecosystem and the destruction of the forest and its potential for regeneration. Using reclaimed timber, the sculpture celebrates the beauty of wood in its natural state and emphasizes its potential as a reusable and renewable resource.

The exhibition provides a vibrant exploration of the art of comics and visual storytelling across the vast continent of Asia. Visitors will embark on a chronological journey from the historical beginnings of this unique art form to the most recent digital advances. While the ubiquitous Japanese manga takes center stage, the exhibition extends its scope beyond, showcasing key creators, iconic characters, and significant publications from across the continent.

 

 

Adults – $18, Seniors and Students – $15, Members and Children under 12 – Free

This exhibit explores Shin’s visual storytelling as a Korean American woman who engages indigeneity as a site of knowledge and creativity. She uses personal archives and figures from Korean shamanism to question the navigational forces that chinoiserie and “the Orient” play in empire, colonization, religion, gender, and love.

Adults – $9, Students, Teachers, and Seniors – $7, Members – Free,
Sundays pay what you can

Refashioning presents two project spaces from transdisciplinary artists and fashion designers: Concept Foreign Garments New York (CFGNY) and Wataru Tominaga. Featuring garments, accessories, and textile works, the exhibition examines the ways in which these two practices—one based in New York, the other in Tokyo—challenge preconceived notions of gender and identity and, in particular, what the artists describe as “vaguely Asian” aesthetics.

 

Tuesday  –  Sunday 11:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.

Since 2007, JANM has partnered with Eric Nakamura, founder of Giant Robot, to produce the Giant Robot Biennale, a recurring art exhibition that highlights diverse creative works celebrating the ethos of Giant Robot—a staple of Asian American alternative pop culture and an influential brand encompassing pop art, skateboard, comic book, graphic arts, and vinyl toy culture.

 

Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday – Sunday, 11:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Thursday, 12:00 noon – 8:00 p.m. Adults – $16, Seniors and Youth – $9, Members and Children under 5 – Free

In 2019, Lawson answered more than 1,000 questions in his Story File so that future generations can continue conversing with him to learn about his legacy. What would you like to ask Lawson?

Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, 11:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.,
Thursday, 12:00 noon – 8:00 p.m.
Adults – $16, Seniors and Youth – $9, Members and Children under 5 – Free

James Tadanao Sata created some of the most adventurous photographs made in America in the 1920s and ’30s. Abstract spheres and triangles, complex arrangements of figures and shadows, and spaces rich with deep and delicate tones emphasized geometric forms and conveyed newness, modernity, and irony. This exhibition comprises sixty photographs by Sata, photographs of Sata’s concentration camp paintings and drawings, and family artifacts from the camp.

 

Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, 11:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Thursday, 12:00 noon – 8:00 p.m.
Adults – $16, Seniors and Youth – $9, Members and Children under 5 – Free