Love your Blackness with Asian Arts Initiative

The most beautiful things can have the darkest creation stories, and Asian Arts Initiative’s (AAI) founding story is no exception.

The community-based arts organization was established in Philadephia’s Chinatown in 1993 as a direct response to tensions between Asian and Black communities heightened by the 1992 Los Angeles riots.

AAI is hoping to use art to address the tensions that existed between the two communities and build solidarity among them through an upcoming exhibit called “Loving Blackness.”

Inspired by recent racial injustices, the exhibit will feature work from over 20 artists exploring the historical relationships between two communities that might have more in common than previous generations realized.

“Loving Blackness” opens Feb. 3 and will run through April 21.