Asian American / Asian Research Institute
The City University of New York
Isamu Noguchi (1904-1988) was an acclaimed international sculptor, designer, and landscape architect. A Japanese American, Noguchi was born in Los Angeles but raised in Japan and studied pre-medicine at Columbia University, New York. In 1942, he founded Nisei Writers and Artists Mobilization for Democracy, and voluntarily entered a U.S. internment camp in Arizona during World … Read more
CHINESE PARENTING IS IN MANY SENSES strikingly similar to porcelain making. One manipulates the clay as one wishes; yet after the firing, only few turn out exactly the same as desired. Legend has it that the ancient Japanese figured out how to repair the cracked pieces of ceramic vases at an enormous cost, which they … Read more
IN 1962, I SKETCHED at the Western Suburbs Zoo in Beijing and saw two North American bison for the first time. Bison are huge in size, brown and black, and move slowly in a space that is not much larger than their bodies. They are incompatible with the zoo, an artificial environment. When sketching, … Read more
COVID Cold as it is, but devastating as if an Ominous roar from nature. Virus gone “wild” because I, a sinner ever hurts nature, Deserves such karma. Fun (Janeiro) Joy imbues every corner While walls are dressed in red for the Rat Laughter here and there And nothing seems fearful … Read more
Gatha or Eulogy —Dedicated to People Who Lost Their Lives due to the Epidemic There is a path called death A homeland to call a grave An ocean wave called tears A vast ocean called the spirit A sky called loneliness A kind of pining called clarity There is a life called impermanence A state … Read more
Author’s Note: During my trip to Asia in early 2020, the severity of the pandemic started to sink in. I left for Taipei with a friend in late January and the trip was uneventful. I was used to the long flight and fatigue crossing the Pacific, traveling East and West. Nevertheless, traveling is enjoyable, especially … Read more