Asian Heritage in Canada
Arts
This page, like others in this site, is a work in progress. It
will identify arts festivals and many of the performing and other
non-literary artists who are active in the Toronto and greater Canadian
arts scene. Each section (Dance, Film & Video, Fine Arts, Music,
Theatre) will eventually consist of two parts, the first identifying
the artist or festival with one or two Internet links, and the second
identifying select resources in the artistic field from the Ryerson
University Library.
Dance
Directory-type information, news and events for many Asian-Canadian
dance companies, dancers, and choreographers in Ontario may be available
via the Dance Ontario website.
CanAsian Dance Festival
Corps de ballet member of the National Ballet of Canada, images
Peter CHIN, profile
and interview with Lalitha Venkat in Narthaki Online, a website
devoted to Indian dance. He is artistic director and founder in 1999 of the interdisciplinary performing arts company TRIBAL CRACKLING WIND -- website
Joanna DE SOUZA, artistic director of
Chhandam Dance Company ; co-director of M-Do Toronto Tabla Ensemble
Centre for World Music and Dance, Toronto, Ontario -- profile
from the TTE website
Naoya EBE is a member of the Corps de Ballet, National Ballet of Canada -- brief biography from the NBC website
Denise FUJIWARA, artistic director of
Fujiwara Dance Inventions -- profile. "1980s Dance as a Path to Wisdom-- Denise
Fujiwara" in Local Heroes. Electronic document available from
the Dance Umbrella of Ontario Network website
Chan Hon GOH, former principal dancer with the
National Ballet of Canada
D. GUNASEELAN and the Gunaseelan Dance
Company, and, the Samarpana Dance Academy, both in Toronto, Ontario
Keichi HIRANO, first soloist with the
National Ballet of Canada -- profile
from the NBC website
Juri HIRAOKA, corps de ballet member of the National Ballet of Canada, profile
Janak KHENDRY and the Janak Khendry Dance
Company, Toronto, Ontario -- website
Hari KRISHNAN, artistic director of InDANCE
-- profile
from Wesleyan University Dance Dept. where he has served as an artist in residence
and offered a master class in the spring of 2009. Krishnan is artistic director of the inDANCE a Toronto-based South Asian dance company established in 1999.
KOREAN DANCE STUDIES SOCIETY OF CANADA -- website
LITTLE PEAR GARDEN COLLECTIVE, was founded in 1994 by William Lau. Emily Cheung is the new artistic director, as noted on the collective's website viewed January 21, 2008.
Stacey Shiori MINAGAWA, first soloist
with the National Ballet of Canada -- profile
from the NBC website
Shino MORI, corps de ballet member of the National Ballet of Canada, profile
Yvonne NG, artistic director of Princess
Productions -- website
Lata PADA, founder and director of the
Sampradayan Dance Academy, Mississauga, Ontario -- website
--profile
and interview with Anita R. Ratnam in Narthaki Online, a website
devoted to Indian dance
Jamee SHEE, fomerly of corps de ballet member of the National Ballet of Canada
Rena SINGHA, instructor at The Kathak
Institute, Toronto, Ontario -- profile by Small, Holly. "1970s Trailblazers of South Asian Dance"
in Local Heroes. Electronic document available from the Dance Umbrella
of Ontario Network website
Roger SINHA and Sinha Danse of Montreal,
Quebec -- website
Menaka THAKKAR -- profile
by Small, Holly. "1970s Trailblazers of South Asian Dance"
in Local Heroes. Electronic document available from the Dance Umbrella
of Ontario Network website
-- images of the
Menaka Thakkar Dance Company in 2002
Nan WANG, corps de ballet member of the National Ballet of Canada, profile
William YONG is a dancer, choreographer and actor living in Toronto. Website.
Xiao Nan YU, principal dancer with the
National Ballet of Canada -- image
from the NBC website
Dance -- Select Ryerson Library Resources
Film and Video
Asian Canadian
Film and Videos, a List, from the Asian.ca website
Romeo CANDIDO, Canadian born Filipino writer, director, musician. Winner of the the Asian Canadian Artists Fund 2004 for Film and Video for his film Rolling Longaniza. Profile from the ACAF website.
Yung CHANG is a Montreal-based filmmaker
and graduate of Concordia University's film school. Read about his
first documentary Earth
to Mouth about the Wing Fong Farm near Newcastle, Ontario where
Asian vegetables are grown.
Annie Onyi CHEUNG is a Toronto-based videographer and performance artist. Her website includes samples of her work. Her first solo exhibitions (fall 2009) was held at the Fleischman Gallery in Toronto.
Atom EGOYAN
Richard FUNG is a Toronto based videographer/filmmaker and gay activist from Trinidad. Fung speaks about his art (available as text, audioclips, or videoclip) on the National Film Board of Canada's POV website, select the Fung image button at bottom left. Artist profile and video available from the Centre for Contemporary Canadian Art website
Ali KAZIMI is an independent documentary filmmaker. He was born and raised in India and now is based in Toronto. View his personal website
Helen LEE
Paul LEE - profile
and synopsis of his third film, The Offering
Quentin LEE
Deepa MEHTA - biography, filmography and brief bibliography from Emory University's Postcolonial Studies website
Richie MEHTA - writer and director of videos such as Amal and Systems of Units. Information on Mehta and his works, including video clips and stills, is available from Poor Man's Productions Ltd. website
Eisha MARJARA - see a photogallery from her film
Desperately Seeking Helen from the NFB
(National Film Board of Canada) website
Dora NIPP - read about her film Under
the Willow Tree: Pioneer Chinese Women in Canada from the
NFB website.
Linda OHAMA has a long career as a visual artist, art educator, and more recently film director and producer. In Obachan's Garden, she tells the story of her grandmother, Asayo Murakami, who immigrated to Canada from Japan in 1923.
Jari OSBORNE. Sleeping
Tigers: The Asahi Baseball Story is director Osborne's NFB documentary
about a pre-WWII Japanese-Canadian baseball team in Vancouver. Unwanted
Soldiers is her award winning documentary about the secret
exploits of her father and his colleagues as Chinese-Canadian soldiers
behind enemy lines in Southeast Asia during WWII. Find out more
from the NFB website.
Meiko OUCHI is an actor with Japanese-
and Celtic-Canadian roots. Shepherd's Pie and
Sushi is described by the NFB
as part Japanese-Canadian history and part autobiography and family
chronicle. OUCHI is also a playwright,
musician, and filmmaker. List of films
from the Film and Video Arts Society of Alberta website. Profile
from Asian Heritage Month in Edmonton website. View the Ouchi author page, part of this website.
Nisha PAHUJA made her directorial debut with the documentary Bollywood Bound, about four young Canadians seeking fame in the Indian movie industry.
Sylvia SAFDIE was born in Lebanon and now lives in Montreal. Artist profile and two videos are available from the Centre for Contemporary Canadian Art website.
Ann SHIN is an award winning filmmaker, writer, and radio producer. Her film Western
Eyes examines the desire by two women of Asian descent to
undergo plastic surgery. Find out more from the NFB
website, where you'll also find information about her documentary Almost Real: Connecting in a Wired World. View the Shin author page that is part of this website.
Pierre SIDAOUI -This Montreal-based Lebanese
immigrant has directed an autobiographical film A
Scent of Mint; read more from the NFB
website
Atif SIDDIQI - Born in Pakistan, this
Montreal-based performance artist, filmmaker and fashion designer
recently directed another autobiographical film Solo
with the National Film Board
Mina SHUM
Yoko TAKASHIMA, video/sound artist profile
with interview and slideshow from the CBC website.
Sanjay TALREJA is an Ontario filmmaker of Indian heritage. Cricket ... and the Meaning of Life documents a group of Toronto cricket players.
Ho TAM, Hong Kong-born artist and videographer now teaches in Victoria, B.C. Visit his personal website
Shui-Bo WANG. Artist and filmmaker. His
visual autobiography Sunrise Over Tiananmen Square
won a number of awards. Find out more via the NFB
website. View the summary of an exhibition catalogue by Marnie Fleming, et al., Oakville Galleries.
Paul WONG, video artist born in Prince Rupert, B.C. and now residing in Vancouver; profile and four videos from the Centre for Contemporary Canadian Art website. In March 2005, Wong was named one of eight recipients of the sixth annual Governor General's Awards in Visual and Media Arts.
Liu Hao XUE and Tony Ianzelo directed
The First Emperor of China, the story
of Qin Shihuang who declared himself emperor of all China in 221
BC. Find out more from the NFB
website.
Regent Park Film
Festival
Toronto Japanese Short Film Festival
Toronto Reel Asian International
Film Festival
Vancouver Asian Film Festival
Film and Video -- Select Ryerson Library Resources
Reel Asian: Asian Canada on Screen, ed. Elaine Chang. Toronto: Coach House Books and the Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival, 2007.
9th floor PN1993.5 .C3 R44 2007
Atom EGOYAN - Feature Films:
Exotica.
Producers, Camelia Frieberg and Atom Egoyan. 103 min. Ego Film Arts,
1995. Videocassette.
2nd floor, Audio-Visual PN1997 .E962 1995
Atom EGOYAN - About:
Egoyan, Atom. Exotica.
Toronto: Coach House Press, 1995.
9th floor PN1997 E96 1995
Romney, Jonathan. Atom
Egoyan. London: BFI Pub., 2003.
9th floor PN1998.3 .E334 R6 2003
Richard FUNG - Videos:
Orientations:
Lesbian & Gay Asians. Produced and directed by Richard Fung.
56 min. Richard Fung, 1984. Videocassette.
2nd floor Reserve HQ76.3 .C22 O57 1984
Out of the
Blue. Produced and directed by Richard Fung. 28 min. Fungus
Productions, 1991. Videocassette.
2nd floor Reserve HV7315 .O6 O97 1991
Richard FUNG - About:
Lee, Helen, and Kerri Sakamoto, eds. Like
Mangoes in July: The Work of Richard Fung. Toronto: Insomniac
Press, 2002.
8th floor N6549 .F85 L53 2002
Richard FUNG - About:
Muñoz, José. "The Autoethnographic Performance: Reading Richard Fung's Queer Hybridity." In Queer Screen: A Reader, ed. by Jackie Stacey and Sarah Street, [163]-180. London: Routledge, 2007.
9th floor PN1995.9 .H55 Q47 2007
Richard FUNG - About:
Pidduck, Julianne. "New Queer Cinema and Experimental Video." In New Queer Cinema: A Critical Reader, ed. Michele Aaron, 80-97. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2004.
9th floor PN1995.9 .H55 N48 2004b
Richard FUNG - About:
Waugh, Thomas. "Good Clean Fung." In Screening Asian Americas, ed. Peter X. Feng, 243-252. New Brunswick, N.J. : Rutgers University Press, 2002.
9th floor PN1995.9 .A77 S79 2002
Richard FUNG - Exhibition Catalogue:
Fung, Richard. Richard Fung: Landscapes. Hamilton, ON: McMaster Museum of Art, 2008. (Exhibition was held 20 Nov. 2008-17 Jan. 2009)
8th floor ND249 .F86 A4 2008
Paul WONG - About:
Gagnon, Monika Kin. "Go On, Push My Discursive Limits: The Ambivalence of Paul Wong's Video Works." In Other Conundrums: Race, Culture, and Canadian Art, 164-174. Vancouver: Arsenal Pulp Press, 2000.
8th floor N6549.3 .G34 2000
Fine Art
Diyan ACHJADI is based in Vancouver. She was co-featured in an exhibit entitled Sugar Bombs at the Kamloops Art Gallery and the Mendel Art Gallery in Saskatoon.
Canadian Artists of Arab Origin Virtual Exhibition from the Canadian Museum of Civilization. Created in conjunction with an exhibit called: The Lands Within Me: Expressions by Canadian Artists of Arab Origin.
CENTRE A : Vancouver International
Centre for Contemporary Asian Art
Harvey CHAN, illustrator and graphic
artist: profile
from Groundwood Books website; brief bio
and portfolio from the i2i Art Inc. agency website
Kai CHAN, Toronto-based jeweler and multi-media artist; profile from the Centre for Contemporary Canadian Art website
Aries CHEUNG, illustrator, visual artist,
graphic designer and performer: personal
homepage
David CHEUNG, Toronto-based artist whose work includes painting, installations and performance art; profile from the Centre for Contemporary Canadian Art website
Ying-Yueh CHUANG, Taiwan-born, Toronto based ceramist, profile from the Artists Registry of the Canadian Clay and Glass Gallery, hosted by the Collections Canada website
Sarindar DHALIWAL, Toronto-based artist born in Punjab, India and raised in England; profile from the Centre for Contemporary Canadian Art website
Wenyun HUA, painter, profile and gallery from XeXe Gallery website
Yousuf KARSH, photographer, profile
from the CBC website
Roy KIYOOKI, multi-disciplinary artist,
poet website; link to Author entry
on this website
Germaine KOH, Malaysian-born, Toronto-based multi-disciplinary artist,
profile
with photographs and bibliography from Catriona Jeffries Gallery,
Vancouver, B.C. website; profile from the Centre for Contemporary Canadian Art website
Manuel LAU, printmaker born in Peru, raised in Macau and living in Vancouver since 1991, personal website
Roberto LAVIDEZ, painter, poet, writer:
personal homepage
J.J. LEE, painter. Winner of the Asian Canadian Artists Fund 2004 for Visual Arts. Profile from the ACAF website.
Lui LIU, painter, personal website with biography and gallery.
Ken LUM, photographer, profile
from the Museum in Progress website
MALAK (Malak Karsh), photographer
Kazuo NAKAMURO, summary of an exhibition catalogue by Ihor Holubizky et al., Robert McLaughlin Gallery, Oshawa, Ontario.
Alfred NG, watercolour painter, personal website with biography, galleries and artist statements
Simon NG, illustrator and graphic artist:
profile
from Groundwood Books website
Wayne NGAN, potter, profile
with interview and slideshow from the CBC website
Sarah NIND, Brunei-born, Toronto based artist and writer who sometimes melds photography and painting; profile from the Centre for Contemporary Canadian Art website
Ruth OHI, illustrator and now author
of Canadian children's literature: personal
homepage
Haruko OKANO, multi-discipline artist,
profile
with interview and slideshow from the CBC website
Khang PHAM-NEW, Vietnamese-born sculptor, personal website gallery, biography and gallery from XeXe Gallery website
Ed PIEN, summary of an exhibition catalogue by Christophe Domino, Canadian Cultural Centre, Paris, France; profile from the Centre for Contemporary Canadian Art website; profile from artfacts.net
Sylvia SAFDIE, artist and video-artist was born in Lebanon and now lives in Montreal; profile and two videos are available from the Centre for Contemporary Canadian Art website
Satoshi SAITO, sculptor, with Louise
Doucet, known as DOUCET-SAITO, profile
from the CBC website
SAVAC (South Asian Visual Arts
Collective)
Noboru SAWAI, artist born in Japan, now based in Vancouver; profile from the Centre for Contemporary Canadian Art website
Ranjan SEN, painter, printmaker, sculptor, etcetera, born in West Bengal, India and now based in Vancouver; profile including two documentary videos from the Centre for Contemporary Canadian Art website
Kye-Yeon SON, metalsmith and Halifax resident born in South Korea, is now an instructor at NSCAD University; faculty page; winner of the 2011 Saidye Bronfman Award for Excellence in fine crafts.
Aiko SUZUKI, a multi-media artist who is well known for her fibre sculpture, and modern dance sets, memorial website
Naoko TAKENOUCHI, glass artisan, profile
with interview and slideshow from the CBC website
Karen TAM, installation artist and videographer. Visit her personal website Philip Monk's Catalogue of an exhibition held at the Art Gallery of York University, Disassembling the Archive: Fiona Tam (2007)
Ho TAM, Hong Kong-born artist and videographer now teaches in Victoria, B.C. Visit his personal website
Takao TANABE, Prince Rupert, B.C. native now living in Parksville, B.C.; profile from the Centre for Contemporary Canadian Art website
Brendan TANG is a ceramic artist based in Kamloops, British Columbia. He was co-featured in an exhibit entitled Sugar Bombs at the Kamloops Art Gallery and the Mendel Art Gallery in Saskatoon.
Ron TERADA, multi-disciplinary artist, Vancouver native and resident,
profile
with photographs and bibliography from the Catriona Jeffries Gallery,
Vancouver, B.C. website; profile from the Centre for Contemporary Canadian Art website
Jan Peng WANG, artist, illustrator
Gu XIONG, artist, illustrator, printmaker,
teacher: profile
from Groundwood Books website. View summaries of two exhibition catalogues about Xiong and other photographers.
Jin-Me YOON, photographer/video artist, born in Seoul, South Korea and now residing in Vancouver; profile
from the CBC website; profile from the Centre for Contemporary Canadian Art website
Ange ZHANG, illustrator and theatre designer:
profile
from Groundwood Books website
Fine Art -- Select Ryerson Library Resources
Kai CHAN - Exhibitions:
Kai Chan: A Spider's Logic: A 35 Year Retrospective Exhibition. Curated by Sarah Quinton. Markham, Ont.: Varley Art Gallery of Markham, 2011.
8th floor N6549 .C492 A4 2010
Chow Dong HOY - Exhibitions:
Moosang, Faith. First Son: Portraits by C.D. Hoy. Vancouver: Presentation House Gallery/Arsenal Pulp Press, 1999.
10th floor TR680 .M65 1999
Gagnon, Monika Kin. Other Conundrums: Race, Culture and Canadian Art. Vancouver: Arsenal Pulp Press, 2000.
8th floor N6549.3 .G34 2000
Yousuf KARSH - About:
Karsh, Yousuf. Karsh:
A Biography in Images. Boston: MFA Publications, 2003.
10th floor TR680 .K37 2003
Yousuf KARSH - Exhibitions:
Karsh: The
Art of the Portrait. Ottawa: National Gallery of Canada, 1989.
10th floor TR680 .K6 1989
Kaouk, Aïda, ed. The Lands Within Me: Expressions by Canadian Artists of Arab Origin. Gatineau, Que.: Canadian Museum of Civilization, 2003.
8th floor N6549.5 .A65 L36 2003
Roy KIYOOKA - Conference Proceedings:
O'Brian, John, Naomi Sawada, and Scott Watson, eds. All
Amazed: For Roy Kiyooka. Vancouver, B.C.: Arsenal Pulp Press,
2002.
8th floor N6549.K5 R69 2002
Ken LUM - Exhibitions:
Lum, Ken. Ken Lum. Vancouver: Douglas & McIntyre, 2011.
8th floor N6549 .L86 A4 2011
Scott, Kitty and Martha Hanna, eds. Ken
Lum Works With Photography. Ottawa: National Gallery of Canada,
2002.
10th floor TR647 .L85 2002
Takao TANABE - As Hand Printer
Reid, Robert R. Takao Tanabe: Sometime Printer. Vancouver: Alcuin Society, 2010.
Special Collections
Music
Tapestry New Opera Works
website for Iron Road,
photo
archive composed by CHAN Ka Nin, written by Mark BROWNELL, Chinese
translations/lyrics by George K. WONG. This excellent site provides
a great deal of information on this production that had its world
premiere in April 2001 at the Elgin Theatre in Toronto. The opera
brings to the stage the story of the Chinese workers' contribution
to the construction of the National Railroad that linked the young
nation Canada.
Fubuki Daiko: Winnipeg-based taiko drum ensemble
Vincent HO: Winnipeg-based composer-- personal website
Jeng Yi: A Korean Drum and
Dance Ensemble
LEE Pui Ming
M-DO Toronto Tabla Ensemble
BIF NAKED: musician/singer, born in India,
adopted by American parents who eventually settled in Manitoba--
commercial website
Kevin YEE: website of Vancouver-born singer/songwriter and performer who has played the role Pepper in the Toronto production of the musical Mamma Mia! for more than 800 shows.
Theatre
CAHOOTS Theatre
Projects is committed to producing culturally diverse works,
including those by Asian Canadian theatre-makers.
Marjorie CHAN, actor and playwright.
Member profile
from the Playwrights Guild of Canadawebsite.
Fu-GEN Asian-Canadian
Theatre Company website. The Company was founded in January,
2002 with a mandate to develop Asian-Canadian artists through the
production of new and established works.
Hiro KANAGAWA, actor and playwright.
Member profile
from the Playwrights Guild of Canada website.
M.J. KANG, actor and playwright. View author page from this website.
Keira LOUGHRAN, actor, playwright, producer. Winner of the the Asian Canadian Artists Fund 2004 for Performing Arts. Profile from the ACAF website.
MAYA South Asian Theatre Company is a Mississauga-based company dedicated to showcasing South Asian artists in the theatre and film industry.
David OIYE, artistic director of Buddies
in Bad Times Theatre, is also a playwright. Read his article in the Queer(ies) edition v.8, issue 10 (winter 2005) of Transmissions, a publication of Rumble Productions in Vancouver. View author page from this website.
Mieko OUCHI, actor, playwright, musician,
and filmmaker. Profile from Asian Heritage Month in Edmonton website. List of films from the Film and Video Arts Society of Alberta website. Member profile from the Playwrights Guild of Canada website. View author page from this website.
Elyne QUAN, actor and playwright. Member
profile
from the Playwrights Guild of Canada website.
Anusree ROY, actor and playwright. Profile from York University Theatre newsletter. Profile from Diaspora Dialogues website.
Jean YOON, actor and playwright. Link to her Gary Goddard Agency homepage.
