Inside Art with Michael Rose - Jeffrey Yoo Warren Artfully Recreates Chinatown
Michael Rose, Art Columnist
Inside Art with Michael Rose - Jeffrey Yoo Warren Artfully Recreates Chinatown
One of art’s purposes is to crystalize and capture moments for history. Conversely, art can also be used to probe and explore historic individuals, events, and places. For multi-talented artist and community scientist Jeffrey Yoo Warren, the practice of making art has enabled him to give the public an opportunity to explore a part of Providence that no longer exists. In an exhibition on view through September 24 at AS220, Warren takes viewers back in time to experience Providence’s thriving Chinatown that existed on Empire Street before it was uprooted more than a century ago.
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Seeing Providence Chinatown, on view in AS220’s Aborn Gallery at 95 Empire Street, is an in-depth exploration of the historic Chinatown community, which has at its heart a 3D reconstruction of now demolished buildings. It is a show that is full of information and Warren is not a creator who works alone. Much of his practice is about connecting people and his current show builds on the work of the RI Chinese History project organized by Angela Yuanyuan Feng, Julieanne Fontana, John Eng-Wong and others.
Discussing what it is like to collaborate as a creator, Warren states, “Some artists think of working collaboratively as taking a risk - because you don't have as much control. I think of it as generative and constantly surprising -- other people bring powerful and often intensely personal ideas and memories into the work, and I always try to ensure that there's enough trust and space for that to happen. But I also know that, because I invite collaboration early on, when my ideas aren't even fully formed, others take a risk in coming along with me on the journey -- because we don't know exactly where it will lead. I'm grateful that they're willing to participate!”
Speaking of what surprised him most while assembling his own exhibition, Warren says, “I was surprised that so few know about the history of Chinatown here, that last year they dug up Empire Street to put in new gas lines, and there was no process for preserving the site or the artifacts that may be buried under the pavement. I hope there will be more consideration for the site in the future.”
Warren comes to the project with a multi-faceted background that has resulted in a rich collection of material. He earned his undergraduate degree in architecture from Yale University and went on to receive his MS from MIT. In 2010, Warren founded Public Lab, which is described as “a community and a non-profit, democratizing science to address environmental issues that affect people”. He stepped down from Public Lab in 2020.
Warren’s show at AS220 is very impactful and has the power to make visitors reconsider the Providence they think they know. Sharing what he hopes audiences take away from experiencing the exhibition, Warren says, “My greatest hope is that this changes how Asian Americans in the area feel about this place, its history, and their relationship to it. But that might take many forms. My own journey in this work, and through the people I've met along the way, has transformed how I think of long-ago events and what they mean to us today.”
Seeing Providence Chinatown is full of behind-the-scenes labor and Warren has already invested a great deal of time and energy in the project. Discussing what is next for the project, Warren states, “I will be developing these reconstruction techniques further in a series of public events at CultureHub in NYC this October, with a focus on peoples' personal and family memories. I'm excited to prototype more in-person creative methods with people, in collaboration with artist Ann Chen. I'm also looking forward to working with Irene Luke Hope, a descendant of one of the first Chinese families in the area, and with others I've met during the project, to continue learning about Providence Chinatown, and about other erased neighborhoods in Providence.”
Through imagination, research, technology, and community, Warren has assembled a fascinating and interactive experience that will enable a new generation of Rhode Islanders to gain an appreciation for the experiences of those who shaped Providence’s Chinatown.
Jeffrey Yoo Warren’s exhibition Seeing Providence Chinatown will be on view through September 24 in AS220’s Aborn Gallery at 95 Empire Street. The gallery is open Thursday - Saturday from 12-5 pm or also by appointment. Learn more about Jeff’s work at www.unterbahn.com.