Symposia, Film Screening & New Exhibition at the Clarke Historical Museum — news shared by Lorraine Hee-Chorley of The Temple of Kwan Tai
Eureka, CA—The Clarke Historical Museum, in collaboration with Humboldt Asians & Pacific Islanders in Solidarity (HAPI), the Humboldt County Historical Society, and the Humboldt County Library, is proud to announce the upcoming exhibition, “Chinese Pioneers: Power and Politics in Exclusion Era Photographs.” This exhibition, made possible with substantial support from a California Humanities grant awarded to Humboldt Asians & Pacific Islanders in Solidarity (HAPI) as part of “Recovering Eureka’s Chinatown Past,” will run from September 7 to December 29, 2024.
Exhibition Details:
The “Chinese Pioneers” photo exhibition explores how the first generations of Chinese Californians were represented in nineteenth and early twentieth-century photography. During this period, the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act, the first major U.S. law to restrict immigration based on national origin or ethnicity, was enacted. Also on display at the Clarke during the “Chinese Pioneers” exhibition will be an exhibit of artifacts from the collections of the Clarke Museum, the Humboldt County Historical Society, and the Trinity County Historical Society, offering a unique perspective on the historical impact of Chinese community members in Humboldt and its neighboring counties.
The “Chinese Pioneers” exhibition is part of a statewide tour organized by the California Historical Society and Exhibit Envoy, with institutional support provided by San Francisco Grants for the Arts and the Yerba Buena Community Benefit District.
Opening Night:
Date: Saturday, September 7, 2024
Time: 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.
Location: Clarke Historical Museum
Symposia and Film Screening in Conjunction with “Chinese Pioneers” exhibition
Symposium 1:
“Chinese Labor Days: Contributions of Local ‘Chinese Pioneers’ to Nineteenth-Century Humboldt County.”
Panelists: Katie Buesch, Poet Daryl Ngee Chinn, Yolanda Latham, Sheila Moon, and Dr. Alex Service.
Admission: Free
Date: Saturday, September 7, 2024
Time: Symposium 4 p.m. – 5:30 p.m./ Reception 5:30 p.m.
Location: Clarke Historical Museum & Online (Hybrid Event)
Registration Required: https://events.humanitix.com/chinese-pioneer-symposium-1-chinese-labor-days-contributions-of-local-chinese-pioneers-to-nineteenth-century-humboldt-county
This free hybrid event will require registration for in-person attendance, with a maximum of 40 attendees. (Funding from California Humanities through HAPI’s “Recovering Eureka’s Chinatown Past”).
YouTube Online Access: https://www.youtube.com/@clarkemuseum240/streams
Facebook Event Page: Coming soon
Film Screening and Discussion:
“Pioneering Asian American Stars from the Golden Age of Hollywood.”
Description: Screening of two films, Phantom of Chinatown (1940) and Daughter of Shanghai (1937) followed by a discussion. The two films are rare examples of “Golden Age” Asian-themed movies that starred Asian American actors rather than Euro-American actors in “yellowface.”
Admission: Free
Date: Wednesday, September 25, 2024
Time: 5:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. (Doors open at 5:00 p.m.)
Location: Humboldt County Library, Eureka, Large Meeting Room
This is a free event due to funding from California Humanities through HAPI’s “Recovering Eureka’s Chinatown Past”.
Symposium 2:
“Nineteenth-Century ‘Chinese Pioneers’ of Humboldt’s Neighboring Counties”
Panelists: Jessica Chew (Red Bluff/Tehama County), Dero Forslund, Jack Frost (Trinity County), Lorraine Hee-Chorley (Mendocino County), Dr. Jean Pfaelzer (Del Norte and neighboring counties)
Admission: Free