Credit: Otto Dyar, circa 1931

We’re so proud to present a three-part installation inspired by Hollywood’s first AAPI movie star and curated by Katie Gee Salisbury, author of the fascinating biography, Not Your China Doll: The Wild and Shimmering Life of Anna May Wong.

Not Your China Doll: A Retrospective of Anna May Wong's Trailblazing Career

In our Soho gallery is this historical retrospective featuring archival photographs, ephemera, classic film clips, an interactive installation, and timeline tracing the life and career of the Asian American icon. On view through Sept. 8. Join us for the opening reception on May 9. View the press release.

On view May 1 to Sept. 8 • Pearl River Mart Soho Gallery, 452 Broadway

Not Your China Doll: Art Inspired by Anna May Wong

In Chelsea Market for the month of May is this exhibition with the artwork of six AAPI and POC women artists working across various mediums, including oil paints, charcoal and ink, illustration, digital art, and collage. Pieces available for purchase. View the press release.

On view May 1 to 31 • Chelsea Market, 75 9th Avenue

Young Hollywood Was Asian: The Pioneers Who Made Motion Pictures

Presented in partnership with the Meatpacking Business Improvement District, archival photographs of pioneering yet lesser known AAPI figures in Hollywood appear on outdoor tables for the month of May. Included are Oscar-winning cinematographer James Wong Howe, Hollywood’s first AAPI heartthrob Sessue Hayakawa, Filipina movie star Elena Jurado, and more.

On view May 1 to 31 • Outdoor dining area in the Meatpacking district

• Register for the May 9 opening reception of “Not Your China Doll: A Retrospective of Anna May Wong's Trailblazing Career”
• View the press release for the Soho exhibition
• View the press release for the Chelsea Market exhibition
• View the price list for the Chelsea Market exhibition
• Read our interview with Katie
• Learn more about Katie’s book

About the Curator

Katie Gee Salisbury is the author of Not Your China Doll: The Wild and Shimmering Life of Anna May Wong, a new biography of the first Asian American movie star. Her work has appeared in the New York Times, Vanity Fair, The Believer, the Asian American Writers' Workshop, and elsewhere. She was a finalist for the Jerome Hill Artist Fellowship in 2021 and gave the TED Talk “As American as Chop Suey.” She also writes the newsletter Half-Caste Woman. A fifth-generation Chinese American who hails from Southern California, she now lives in Brooklyn.

About the Chelsea Market Artists

Mina Chacko is an aspiring character designer and character animation student at the California Institute of the Arts.

Helen Chang finds inspiration in the ever-changing urban landscape of her native New York City. Chang's use of decollage, the process of revealing hidden layers and textures within found materials, adds depth and complexity to her collage compositions. Drawing inspiration from such culturally and visually iconic figures as Anna May Wong, Chang uses vintage film stills and assorted ephemera to reflect the dynamic and hybrid nature of the city as metaphor for identity. 

Felicia Liang is an artist, illustrator, and risograph printmaker based in the Bay Area, California. Her work is inspired by the cultures and communities she’s around, as well as her own inner musings. She loves using color, experimenting with different mediums, and playing with a wide range of styles—from simple line drawings to maximalist compositions.

Tiffany Liang is an artist based in Manhattan, NY. She graduated from Wesleyan University with a major in film studies, but often found herself working in the painting studios late into the night. As a result, her work focuses on technique, history, and storytelling. Working primarily with oil paints, Tiffany meticulously creates large-scale portraits to reclaim space for figures who may have been lost or forgotten over time. 

Linda Sandoval is a California native, born and raised in Los Angeles. She gathers inspiration from black and white photo stills of Hollywood’s yesteryear. One of her favorite subjects to include in her collages is the iconic Anna May Wong. Through her art, she hopes to create a world where different cultures and eras can coexist.

Elizabeth Yoo is a Korean-American fine artist, writer, and lifelong New Yorker. She specializes in key art for movie posters, physical media, and book covers. The poster she illustrated for Academy Award-winning director Ryūsuke Hamaguchi’s Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy was named one of the best movie posters by Posteritati, Letterboxd, and Little White Lies. Her paintings, rendered in Japanese watercolor, Sumi ink, pastel, and charcoal, often evoke the glamor of Old Hollywood and film noir.