Montreal, Que. 1979
L'Amitie Chinoise is a non-profit community organization. They provide a variety of social services to assist both new and old immigrants in adjusting to life in Quebec. Services include language schooling, interpretation and translation primarily in English as a second language.
Fukaya City, Japan 1943
In 1969, he refused an assignment from Time magazine to go to Vietnam, and instead came to Vancouver. He soon became involved with groups such as Intermedia and the New Era Social Club. He has been involved with numerous collaborative photography projects including 13 Cameras and The Origins of ManMade Paradise. He is currently working on Origins/Original's and Nature-Made Paradise in the South Pacific.
Prince George, BC 1964
She is of Chinese, English and Irish descent. Educated at the University of Victoria and Emily Carr College of Art and Design, Boyle graduated from the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design with a BFA in 1988. She has travelled extensively throughout the Pacific Rim. She currently lives and works in Montreal as a painter.
Victoria, BC 1944
He has a doctorate in Chinese History from York University and is an Associate Professor (Mass Communication) at California State University, Hayward. He has produced more than 30 television documentaries and was a journalist for CBC and TVB (Hong Kong) before moving to the US. He has written extensively on Chinese history, notably in Gold Mountain: The Chinese in the New World (1983) and Arming the Chinese: The Western Armaments Trade In Warlord China (1982). He is currently writing Quick and Dirty: The Politics of Television News in Chinese Asia and is producing a four-part television series on Asian American vets of the Vietnam War.
Tainan, Taiwan 1955
His art education began in Taipei when, as a child, he would draw portraits of relatives and friends. After coming to Canada in 1976, Chou continued his education obtaining a Bachelor of Applied Arts (Photography) from Ryerson Polytechnical, Toronto and an MFA (Photography) from Concordia University, Montreal in 1988. His work has been shown at Optica, the Bourget Gallery and Art 45 in Montreal, and the Oakville Galleries, Oakville, Ontario. He is an active member of Amnesty International.
Trinidad 1954
Fung is a graduate of the Ontario College of Art, Photoelectric Arts Department (1977) and of the Cinema Studies program at the University of Toronto (1984). His videotapes Orientations, Chinese Characters, The Way To My Father's Village, and most recent work My Mother's Place, have been screened across Canada, the US, and in Europe. His work focuses on the intersection of sex, race and gender and has involved a critique of conventional media practices. He is active as a writer, lecturer and community organizer. He works at DEC Film/Video Distribution, Toronto, is involved with The Euclid - an independent theatre for film/ video, and Northern Visions which produces the Images Film/Video Festival.
Montreal, Que. 1961
Of Japanese and French Canadian descent she is bilingual in French and English. Gagnon has a BA in Communications Studies from Concordia University in Montreal and an MA in Social and Political Thought from York University in Toronto. She has written essays and reviews on photographic theory, feminism, and visual art for PhotoCommunique, Third Text, Journal Of Women's Studies, C Magazine and Parachute. Editorial experience includes working as CoEditor of Public (1987), Collective Member of Public Access (1984-87), and Editorial Collective Member of borderlines (1984-87). She is the current editor of Parallelogramme, published by the Assn. of National Non-Profit Artists' Centres.
Seattle, Wash. 1947
Hirabayashi is a Vancouver-based choreographer and performer. He is the Executive Director of Kokoro Dance, an experimental dance company that has toured throughout Canada and Europe. Over the past ten years, he has performed with many of Vancouver's best known dance and theatre companies, including the Paula Ross Dance Company, Karen Jamieson Dance Company, Touchstone Theatre and EDAM. A strong interest in interdisciplinary performance has led to collaborations with Boston-based sculptor Bart Uchida, Roy Kiyooka, Snake in the Grass Moving Theatre and Tokyo jazz poet Kazuko Shiraishi.
Moosejaw, Sask. 1926
Kiyooka is a Vancouver photographer, poet, painter, sculptor, filmmaker and teacher who has made a major contribution to the artistic community. He began exhibiting in the early 1950's. His works have been shown extensively in Canada and abroad, including at the Art Gallery of Ontario, the National Gallery in Ottawa, and the Tokyo Museum of Modern Art.
Vancouver, BC 1932
Kubota is an artist, musician, and performer who has achieved recognition in the field of sculpture and improvisational performance. He has a degree in Architecture from the University of Toronto, and has taught at a number of institutions, including the New School of Art and the Art College of Ontario. A founding member of the renowned CCMC, he has toured internationally with this dynamic orchestra. His solo performances integrate voice, facial and body mime drama with electronics and instrumental sound sources.
La Jolla, Calif. 1967
She immigrated to Canada (St. John's, Nfld.) in 1972. She has just completed a BA (Honours) in Sociology from the University of BC, with a concentration in the sociology of race and gender. Lai is an active member of the Asian Canadian Writers' Group and has done public readings for International Women's Day at La Quena, Vancouver, International Book Week at Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Gardens, Vancouver and The Heard But Not Seen Show on Co-Op Radio.
Harare, Zimbabwe 1961
Laiwan immigrated to Canada in 1977 during the war between the liberation movement and Ian Smith's white settler regime. Currently resident in Zimbabwe, she attended ECCAD, and graduated with honours in Interdisciplinary Studies in 1983. Recent articles written include 'Women and Contemporary Culture in Zimbabwe", and "Decolonizing the Image", an interview with Zimbabwean filmmaker Miriam Patsanza. She facilitated a seminar on Women and Representation in Media for the Conference on Women and Technology in Southern Africa (March 1990) sponsored by the UN in Harare with delegates from the SADCC (Southern Africa Development Conference Committee) region.
Newmarket, Ont. 1963
Lee has a "down-to-earth" approach to filmmaking. She was a farmer before she became a filmmaker. The Morning Zoo is her first film and has been distributed internationally as far afield as Nicaragua and China (Shanghai International Television Festival), and as close as the CBC and The Montreal International Festival of Chinese Cinema. Lee is currently creating a half hour drama called Captain Courier. She is also developing a docudrama on the untold history of Chinese Canadian women called But Women Did Come.
Seoul, Korea 1965
The number of hours spent behind a grocery store counter far outstrips the time Helen Lee has been involved in film and media. She has been involved with DEC Film and Video in Toronto, and as a contributing music editor for NOW Magazine. She has published articles in Cinema Canada, Fireweed, Broadside, Nerve!, The Independent and Asian Cinevue. She currently attends New York University as a graduate student in the Cinema Studies Dept. Sally's Beauty Spot was screened at the IFVA (Independent Film and Video Alliance) Showcase at The Euclid Theatre.
Toronto, Ont. 1961
Lem is a third generation Chinese Canadian multi-media artist. She is a writer of poetry and prose, and a visual artist (print-making, collage, drawing and film). Lem graduated from the University of Toronto with a BA in Landscape Architecture and furthered her education at the Ontario College of Art. She is active in the arts community addressing racial discrimination. Her work has been shown at the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival; the Asian American International Film Festival; NYC; the Montreal International Chinese Film Festival; and Images 90, Toronto.
Hong Kong 1958
Vancouver artist Mary-Ann Liu works in sculpture and video. Her three-dimensional works include life and large bronzes, mythic creatures, and interpretive narrative figures. Her work has been exhibited throughout North America, Europe, Asia and the Caribbean.
Hong Kong 1964
She is currently finishing a BA in English at Simon Fraser University. Her interest is focused on contemporary writing by women of colour, and issues involving the return of the Head Tax. Lum has been involved in a variety of community projects in Vancouver, including the Saltwater City exhibition, Urbanarium, the Powell Street Festival, and The Japanese Canadian Citizens Association Aural History Project. She is a member of the Asian Canadian Writers' Group and has published in Kinesis.
Hong Kong 1964
He travelled to Canada as a foreign student at the age of 18. In 1988, he obtained his Bachelor's degree from Simon Fraser University in BC. He continued his studies in photography at ECCAD in Vancouver. Mak returned to Hong Kong in 1989 and is currently working as a freelance photographic artist.
Qui Nhon, Vietnam 1967
He came to Vancouver at the age of ten. Living in Chinatown, he commuted across town to a high school that offered a better art program. He is currently a student at ECCAD. Primarily a painter, these are his first photo collages.
Manila, Philippines 1963
His work reflects the social and political environment in which he is situated - Manila, Bangkok, Burma and Vancouver. His work has been shown at the Osaka Video Festival; Asian American International Video Festival, NYC; American Film Institute, LA; Infermental 8 (Tokyo edition); Yellow Peril: New World Asians, London; Images 89, Toronto; and Asian New World, Vancouver. He is currently living and teaching English in Bangkok, Thailand.
Toronto, Ont. 1961
Onodera is a Toronto based filmmaker who has been producing films for nine years. She has 19 films to her credit. As a body, her films deal provocatively with the issues of identity and isolation within the arena of sexuality and ethnicity. Minimal in design, they often combine documentary elements with fiction and dramatic forms. The Displaced View was nominated for the 1989 Gemini award for Best Documentary.
Macau 1954
She was raised in Vancouver and currently makes a living as a magazine editorial photographer. Rice was educated at the University of BC, ECCAD, and Banff Centre for the Arts. She has been exhibiting professionally since 1975. Solo and group exhibition include Southern Alberta Art Gallery in Lethbridge, Gallery VU in Quebec, Presentation House, Montgomery Cafe, The Convertible Showroom in Vancouver, and Gallery Pfennings in Eindhoven. She is currently working on her first video production.
Calgary, Alta. 1952
She is a founding director of ON EDGE and an arts critic. Educated at the University of BC, BA (History) and London School of Economics and Political Science, MSc (Soviet Politics), she has been an active member of Vancouver's media arts community, particularly on the issues of artist's contracts and censorship. Her articles have appeared in Impulse, Vanguard, FUSE, Video Guide, Parallelogramme, V Magazine and FRONT.
Edmonton, Alta. 1954
Samwald is a film and video scriptwriter based in Vancouver. He has worked in documentary film and experimental video dealing primarily with Asian subject matter. Recent projects include a high school economics curriculum and a play for a teens called Glass House - A History of the Future.
Wailuku, Maui, Hawaii 1947
Truly immigrated to Canada in 1969 as a statement of protest against the US involvement in the Vietnam War. She has worked as a professional actress, musician and producer, and began to explore video in the1980's. She relocated to Vancouver in 1987. Her work has been screened at Invisible Colours, Vancouver; New Langton Arts, San Francisco; Show The Right Thing, a national conference on MultiCultural Film and Video, NYC; In Living Color: Representations of Race and Civil Rights, LA; the National Gallery, Ottawa; the American Film Institute, LA; Chisenhale Gallery, London; Video In, Vancouver; and Images 89, Toronto.
Hong Kong 1964
Tsang immigrated to Canada in 1968. He graduated with a BFA from the University of BC in 1986 and continued studies at the Banff Centre. He has been producing work that deals with photography and text, often with the use of Chinese characters. Chinese Pictures was a solo exhibition at the Banff Centre in 1987 and at Artspeak, Vancouver in 1988. He has also been involved in numerous group exhibitions including The Vancouver Exchange, Cold City Gallery, Toronto; Fear of Others: Art Against Racism, CPR Roundhouse, Vancouver; and In Transition: Chinese Canadian
Artists in Vancouver, Chinese Cultural Centre.
Montreal, Que. 1971
This non-profit organization has produced numerous award winning documentaries and artists' videotapes. This important centre pioneered the concept of 'community video' in Quebec. It became a model for many similar experiments internationally. Le Videographe continues to play a vital role in helping to define Quebec culture in the production and distribution of independent work.
New Westminster, BC 1941
Wakayama is the unofficial photo-chronicler for Vancouver's Little Tokyo. He is an active community organizer and one of the founders of the Powell Street Festival. His photoworks have been exhibited in numerous international group and one-man shows including the Canadian Centre of Photography, Toronto; the Smithsonian Institute,Washington, DC; the Chisenhale Gallery, London; and the Vancouver East Cultural Centre. He is currently working on a photographic exhibition and book on 14 Powell Street Festivals, 1977-1991, Powell Street Festival: A Celebration of Nikkei Renewal.
Prince Rupert, BC 1955
Wong is a multi-media artist, curator, and organizer. Based in Vancouver, his work has been widely circulated. A firm believer in artist control of production, presentation and criticism he has helped to coordinate many organizations to facilitate these mandates. These organizations include the .satellite Video Exchange Society, Vancouver Artists League, ANNPAC and ON EDGE. He has produced programming for Video In, Western Front, Montgomery Cafe, Images 90, and the IFVA. His writings have been published in Video Guide and Asian Cinevue. He is currently in production with So Are You, a videotape about identity, racism, and mass media.
Hong Kong 1949
He was brought to Vancouver as a "paper son", where he was raised by aunts and uncles. He became part of the Chinese Canadian cafe landscape, working in restaurants and greasy spoons throughout Chinese North America, eventually putting down roots in Vancouver's Chinatown. Wong-Chu spent four years at the Vancouver Art School and has since worked as a community organizer, historian, and radio broadcaster. He is a founding member of the Asian Canadian Writers' Workshop, as well as being a full-time letter carrier for Canada Post. His book of poetry Chinatown Ghosts was published to critical acclaim in 1986. He is currently editing an anthology of Chinese Canadian writers.
Seoul, Korea 1960
Yoon immigrated to Vancouver in 1968. She grew up in the predominantly white, lower middleclass suburbs of North Delta, BC. Between travels abroad, she obtained a BA in Psychology (1985) from the University of BC and a BFA (1990) from ECCAD. She is currently pursuing an MFA in Photography at Concordia University in Montreal.
Victoria, BC 1956
Vancouver artist and teacher, she has exhibited in British Columbia, Europe, and Australia. She is a graduate of the Fine Arts program at the University of Victoria, with further studies in Banff, Montreal, and Japan. Yuen lectures and teaches throughout BC including at ECCAD and the Metchosin Inter. Summer School of the Arts. She is the proprietor of Kakali Papers, a studio that specializes in handmade papers and co-owner of Paper-Ya, a retail outlet devoted to paper products from around the world.
Le Videographe Inc.
460, rue Sainte-Catherine O.
local 504
Montréal, Québec H3B 1A7
(514) 866-4720
Video Out
1965 Main St.
Vancouver, BC V5T 3C1
(604) 872-8449
V Tape
183 Bathurst St.,
Toronto, Ont. M5T 2R7
(416) 863-9897
Western Front Video
303 East 8th Ave.,
Vancouver, B.C. V5T 1S1
(604) 876-9343