Dream State: Visions of Multimedia Artists
Witness how an artist's process blooms in a multimedia dreamscape built upon the visions of emerging AAPI creatives.
How do you build your dream? What pushes you to redefine it? How do you continue to reconstruct it?
For one night only, explore these questions and witness how an artist’s process blooms as the Asian Art Museum is transformed into a dreamscape built upon the visions of emerging AAPI creatives. This evening is for the audacious believers, courageous problem-solvers, and those who ask, “What more?”
In the business of dreams, there is much to consider; it’s time to become the owner of yours.
Program details
5:45 PM: Double feature film screening:
“KONGKEE: AM I DROWNING OR AM I FLYING?” — Documentary. Following COVID-19, a comic book animator and a curator come together to change a museum forever.
“Bridge to Everywhere” — Award-winning animation. After a serendipitous disaster on a Chinatown street corner, a pigeon gains immortality and becomes a pivotal part of over 1,000 years of San Francisco history.
6:15 PM: Artist Talk with director Spencer Tsang.
6:45 PM: Dream State Introduction and special announcement with Spencer Tsang and Yăng Shēng creators Hanna Chen and Steph Cai.
“The Blueprint” — Leave your mark with an interactive visualization of dream weaving, designed by Yăng Shēng in collaboration with Yasmine Anastasia and Sorell Tsui.
Sounds by DJ Bitesize.
POPO: Dream Division
The Public Opinion Pigeon Officers (aka “POPO”) is a collective of pigeon artists fluttering into a soft landing place for conversations, centering around community and art. In this iteration of POPO, the special unit “Dream Division” pokes at dreaming as an act of giving and serves as a metaphor for the dark and resilient history of Asian immigrants. Born and living in San Francisco’s Chinatown, the collective creates work that brings positive attention to their community and public opinion. The POPO by artist Bijun Liang is a newly commissioned piece by the Chinese Culture Center of San Francisco, supported by the California Arts Council. POPO made its debut during Art Bites: An Art Block Party (2024) in Chinatown.
About the Artists
Spencer Tsang hails from a prestigious lineage of poor Chinatown immigrants. His family has been creating from scraps for generations; his creative approach is similar. YouTube was Tsang’s film school. He attended the Stella Adler Studio of Acting not to become an actor, but to earn the permission to direct them. His film “Fight Night” premiered in high schools across the country, catalyzing conversations on toxic masculinity. In 2022, as the Artist-in-Residence with the Chinese Culture Center, Tsang curated seven exhibitions, raising money for businesses recovering from Asian hate crimes and COVID. He looks forward to beginning with the Academy at Goodby, Silverstein & Partners as an aspiring Art Director.
Yăng Shēng is a multichannel experimental art brand, reimagining Chinese and Taiwanese traditions through an editorial lens. Created by Steph Cai (Executive Producer & Co-Creative Director) and Hanna Chen (Co-Creative Director, Art Director & Brand Strategist), Yăng Shēng is a community incubator for fruits of the Asian diaspora to nurture their identities and crafts together. At its core, Yăng Shēng is a self-nourishing way of life: the warm, fuzzy feeling that you get from breaking bread with your chosen family. Indulge in Yăng Shēng through immersive experiences dedicated to fostering the modern-day village.
Colour Palette Magazine is a multidimensional creative outlet birthed to uplift the voices of artists of color worldwide. The idea was first conceptualized in 2020 by Dominic Wong and Jenay Denise. Both raised in Oakland, California, they grew up surrounded by ingenuity, authenticity, and imagination. The two branched out of Oakland and witnessed this same creative spirit everywhere they went. They were growing up in a renaissance. Alongside friends and peers who were simultaneously pursuing creative endeavors, only two goals seemed to fit: creating tangible art and establishing a platform for underrepresented artists. Colour Palette Magazine served as editors and interview consultants on the Yăng Shēng installations for “Dream State.”
The Happy Crane is a Bay Area-based modern Chinese popup due to open its brick and mortar location in early 2025. Its seasonal menu of food and cocktails pays homage to China’s culinary heritage and the rich bounty of California, using a dash of creativity to uplift traditions and respectfully usher classic Chinese experiences into the modern age. Both the restaurant’s menu and its mission are deeply personal to The Happy Crane’s chef and founder, James Yeun Leong Parry.
Two Two is a concept space for fashion and creativity in Oakland, California. Its curatorial lens is playful, crafted, reciprocal, and experimental. The number 22 symbolizes the ‘builder of dreams’ and its intimate space provides a place for storytellers, collaborators, and emerging designers to share their vision with art and fashion enthusiasts in the Bay and beyond. Visit Two Two at 3221 Grand Ave in Oakland, at twotwo.online, and on Instagram at @twotwo.online.
Bijun Liang is a Chinese-American artist based in San Francisco, CA. Her practice encompasses interactive installations and public art. Using a unique blend of playfulness, humor, and crowdsourcing, Liang puts the voices of the community at the forefront of the art she creates. In recent years, Liang exhibited her works at The Headlands Center for the Arts, Chinatown Media & Arts Collaborative, the Chinese Culture Center, and Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. Her recent accomplishments include creating murals like Fufufufufu and Welcome to Chilltown, as well as community-based installations such as Facepalm and Omens in Chinatown. Liang has been recognized in art collections on SuperRare and at LACMA.
DJ Bitesize is a turntablist/party rocker and DJ instructor from San Francisco. Bitesize has performed at numerous parties in the Bay Area and LA and for companies like Facebook and Rakuten. She has won local DJ battles and is part of an infamous legacy of Filipino scratchers and turntablists in the Bay Area.
Additional event collaborators include:
Lane Fujita (Graphic Designer)
Yasmine Anastasia (Installation Designer)
Sorell Raino-Tsui of ABG Art Group (Installation Designer)
My-Linh Pham (Installation Architect)
Rachel Halpert of Kinfolx (Experience Designer)
Chloe Ng of Lower Grand Radio (Risograph Printer)
Sherelie Lum (Production Assistant)
Chinese Culture Center of San Francisco
