Best! Letters from Asian Americans in the arts
Edited by Christopher K. Ho and Daisy Nam
This collection of seventy-three letters written in 2020 captures an unprecedented moment in politics and society through the experiences of Asian-American artists, curators, educators, art historians, editors, writers, and designers. The form of the letteroffers readers intimate insights into the complexities of Asian American experiences, moving beyond the model-minority myth. Chronicling everyday lives, dreams, rage, family histories, and cultural politics, these letters ignite new ways of being, and modes of creating, at a moment of racial reckoning.
Release Date: February 24, 2021.
340 pages.
Perfect bound, 7 × 10"
With Contributions By:
Aily Nash and Sylvia Schedelbauer, Ajay Kurian, Alexander Lau, Anicka Yi, Anne Anlin Cheng, Anoka Faruqee, Aruna D’Souza, Asad Raza, Brendan Fernandes, Brian Kuan Wood, Byron Kim, C. Spencer Yeh, Candice Lin, Cathy Park Hong, Celine Wong Katzman, CFGNY, Chitra Ganesh and Sung Hwan Kim, Chris Wu, Christine Y. Kim, Dawn Chan, Furen Dai, Hera Chan, Herb Tam, Holly Shen, Hồng-Ân Trương, Howie Chen, Hyperlink Press, Iftikhar Dadi, J Fan, j.p. mot, Jean Shin, Jen Liu, Jesse Chun, Jessica Hong, Jia Tolentino, John Tain, John Yau, Josh Kline, Ka-Man Tse, Ken Lum, Kenneth Tam, Kim Nguyen, Luke Luokun Cheng, Lumi Tan, Maia Chao, Marc Handelman, Marci Kwon, Margaret Lee, Martha Tuttle, Martin Wong, Mary Lum, Matthew Shen Goodman, Megha Ralapati, Mel Chin, Michelle Lopez, Mimi Wong, Mo Kong, Naeem Mohaiemen and Yara El-Sherbini, Pamela M. Lee, Patrick Jaojoco, Patty Chang, Paul Pfeiffer, Philip Poon, Prem Krishnamurthy, Ralph Pugay, Sarah McCaffery, Zheng Sheng-Tian, WangShui, Sreshta Rit Premnath, Tausif Noor, Vinay Hira, Yayoi Shionoiri, and Zulfikhar Bhutto.
Reviews
Artforum, May 21, 2021
Interview between Harley Wong, Christopher K. Ho and Daisy Nam
“The term Asian American emerged from the 1960s, and now it’s colloquial and convenient but also something to go against. Josh Kline, for instance, questioned what it means for someone from the Philippines, which was colonized by the United States, to be defined as “Asian American.” In her contribution, Furen Dai revises and corrects a letter from former President Trump congratulating her on becoming a US citizen.”
Frieze, May 14, 2021
By Ysabelle Cheung
“I attempted Yara el-Sherbini and Naeem Mohaiemen’s whitewashing Hollywood crossword and I took Aruna D’Souza’s call for solidarity, in particular the alignment of Asian and Black communities, to heart. Having applied for an O1-B visa once upon a time myself, I recognize the official language of alienation in paperwork presented by Jesse Chun and Furen Dai. In letters to and about the deceased, I see the grief and longing for those who came before us: Mike Kanemitsu (written by John Yau); Genpei Akasegawa, co-founder of the short-lived Hi-Red Center collective (Yayoi Shionoiri); Isamu Noguchi (Brendan Fernandes); Yasuhiro Ishimoto (John Tain).”
