Event: Asian Arts Initiative’s Pearl Street Block Party

This Saturday, September 27, Asian Arts Initiative is holding the Pearl Street Block Party from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Pearl Street between 12th & 13th St. The neighborhood arts festival, which celebrates the rich cultural diversity and artistic community of Chinatown North / Callowhill, is free and open to the public.

The event will feature live performances, music, activity tables, displays, and interactive artwork by a diverse range of local artists, including an exciting array of Social Practice Lab projects created by Asian Arts Initiative’s current and past artists-in-residence.

Some of the artists-in-residence participating include:

• Rick Lowe, who will discuss strategies for shifting the social dynamics of the alley over a game of dominoes on Pearl Street
• Walter Hood, who will debut prototypes for physical interventions to change the way we physically engage with the alley
• Meei Ling Ng, who will invite community members to work on a new boat planter, combining sculpture with urban farming
• Dave Kyu & Scott Kip, who will debut a miniature version of the billboard they will construct later this year to display community-sourced messages

Both Lowe and Hood have participated in the The Pearl Street Project, which is also a component of Asian Arts Initiative’s Social Practice Lab. The Pearl Street Project seeks to transform Pearl Street into a more vibrant cultural space. Pearl Street is the alley that runs behind Asian Arts Initiative’s building and extends for four blocks through Chinatown North/Callowhill.

The party will culminate at 5 p.m. with a community meal with food from local restaurants in Chinatown and Callowhill. An invitation and ticket is required for the meal: to request more information, please contact Nancy Chen, Public Programs Manager, at 215 557 0455 or via email at nancy.chen@asianartsinitiative.org

Find out more about the Pearl Street Project as well as the block party on Asian Arts Initiative’s website, http://asianartsinitiative.org/

Image via Asian Arts Initiative