Talk


Ho Tam and Winnie Wong: Online Artist Talk and Conversation

November 30, 2024 – November 30, 2024
5:00 pm – 6:00 pm
Online

Co-presented by Chinese Culture Center (CCC) of San Francisco and Asia Art Archive in America (AAAinA) in New York, this hybrid program can be viewed both in person and virtually. A livestream link will be sent when an RSVP is received. 

AAAinA is pleased to collaborate with the Chinese Cultural Center of San Francisco (CCC) to present a hybrid conversation between artist Ho Tam and UC Berkeley professor Winnie Wong. This program serves as the concluding event for Tam’s artist residency with CCC,  hosted at the San Francisco community space 41 Ross. During the conversation, Tam and Wong, who will be speaking from San Francisco, will reflect on the artist’s transformative time in San Francisco’s Chinatown—including the unexpected discovery of his family’s roots in California. This discussion will dive into key themes driving Tam’s work, including identity politics, media representation, social stereotypes, and the tension between alienation and belonging. 

Tam will also share a behind-the-scenes look at how he reimagined 41 Ross, turning it into a vibrant cultural hub and a living extension of Hotam Press, his Vancouver-based multifaceted media platform. This program will provide a unique chance to hear firsthand about Tam’s creative process, his connection with local artists, and the vital role print media plays in preserving the rich cultural fabric of the oldest Chinatown in the U.S. where print shops continue to thrive. 

As part of this bicoastal collaboration between CCC in San Francisco and AAAinA in New York, a pop-up installation of Tam’s work will be on display at AAAinA’s reading room during the last two weeks of November.

Participant Bios

Ho Tam is a Hong Kong-born Canadian artist whose diverse practice spans video, photography, painting, drawing, graphic design, and print media. His work frequently explores themes of mass media representation, race, and identity politics. Tam has exhibited his art in galleries and film festivals across Canada and internationally. Over the past decade, he has focused on independent publishing under his imprint, Hotam Press.

Tam received a BA from McMaster University and an MFA from Bard College (NY). From 1996 to 1997, he was a participant at the Whitney Museum Independent Study Program. His video work has earned several accolades, including Best Documentary at the Tel Aviv International LGBT Film Festival and the Outstanding Artistic Achievement Award at OutFest in Los Angeles, both for his 2006 film Books of James. From 2004 to 2010, he taught full-time at the University of Victoria, BC. Since the 2010s, Tam has been focusing on independent publishing of artist books and zines, and currently he manages a bookshop/gallery in Vancouver, BC.

Winnie Wong is a Professor in the Department of Rhetoric at UC Berkeley. Her research focuses on the history and present of artistic authorship, particularly the interactions between China and the West. She explores critical distinctions between high and low, true and fake, art and commodity, originality and imitation, and conceptual and manual labor, examining objects and practices at the boundaries of these categories. Her forthcoming book, The Many Names of Anonymity (University of Chicago Press, Fall 2025), studies the nameless and “nameful” portraitists of Guangzhou (Canton) in the 18th and early 19th centuries, when the city was the sole port of trade between China and Europe. 

Wong earned her Master’s in the History, Theory, and Criticism of Architecture and Art from MIT, followed by a role in the curatorial department of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and directing a non-profit new media exhibition space in Cambridge, MA. She later obtained her PhD from MIT and was a Junior Fellow of the Harvard Society of Fellows before joining Berkeley in 2013.

About CCC

Established in 1965, CCC (the Chinese Culture Center of San Francisco) stands as a non-profit arts organization with a rich legacy spanning over 50 years. Throughout its history, CCC has played a pivotal role in elevating Chinatown through the arts, as both a vibrant neighborhood and a poignant metaphor for the immigrant experience. In recent years, CCC has undergone transformative growth, presenting thought-provoking international exhibitions and engaging educational programs. The organization’s commitment to spotlighting pressing and nuanced issues of our time sparks essential dialogues, uniting diverse perspectives and inspiring meaningful actions toward a more inclusive and equitable society. Some of its iconic programming includes “Chinatown History and Art Walking Tour,” “XianRui: Artist in Excellence Series,” “41 Ross: Artist-in-Residence,” and the new “Hungry Ghost Festival.” 

41 Ross AIR is supported by Community Challenge Grant, Institute of Museum and Library Services. Chinatown Arts Promotion Support by the Office of Economic and Workforce Development. Additional Artist Support by Canada Council for the Arts.

AAAinA’s general programming and operations are funded in part by the New York State Council on the Arts, the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in Partnership with the City Council, Ruth Foundation, and the Vilcek Foundation, and other foundations and individuals.