EFA Project Space, New York, New York
May 9 – June 4, 2024
Asian American Arts Alliance is pleased to partner with EFA Project Space, a program of The Elizabeth Foundation for the Arts, to present Devoted: Religion in Asian American Art, a group exhibition on theological influences in work by Zain Alam, Shelly Bahl, Baseera Khan, Dew Kim, Heesoo Kwon, and Sunnie Liu. Whether practicing or non-practicing, the featured artists draw upon tensions arising from making work as Asian Americans in the context of the United States as a de facto Christian nation.
Though by no means comprehensive in scope, Devoted presents potential facets of religious influence, whether it be divine revelation, challenging dominant theological claims, or simply pious commitment to one’s craft. By following the link between religion and Asian American identity, the exhibition confronts myths of the East as inherently more mystical than the rational West (as voiced in criticisms by Palestinian scholar Edward Said). They also refute the vision of so-called Orientals as “heathens” in need of rescue—as Kathryn Gin Lum has described perceptions of non-Christian immigrants in the US, alongside Indigenous and enslaved Black peoples—that has continued since the nation’s founding. Religious belief, then, plays a central yet under-acknowledged role in racial othering, fomenting some of the most urgent political tensions today and forming a common link of inquiry between the works on view.
Photography: Argenis Apolinario
Danielle Wu 