The launch of the Chinese Museum Arts Collective
Sunday 28 March 2022

The Chinese Museum launched The Arts Collective to invigorate the creative expression of Chinese Australians and is working in partnership with RMIT School of Art to develop this initiative. RMIT School of Art has had an ongoing relationship with The Museum of Chinese Australian History for over a decade and contributes to ongoing work via CAST’s Migration+Mobility+Art stream.

The Arts Collective aims to bring together artists and people of creative disciplines who wish to explore the artistic, cultural, historical and social dimensions of the Chinese Australian experience in innovative and contemporary ways.

The Arts Collective operates in coordination with the museum’s collections and educational programs, and its network of commercial and government supporters, to provide opportunities that promote networking, skill and knowledge sharing, mentoring, and collaboration among art practitioners emergent and established. 

The Arts Collective was officially launched on 28 March 2022 at The Museum of Chinese Australian History. A preview performance of the hip-hop musical Ah Chan, Cabinet Maker, developed by members of the collective opened proceedings. Gabrielle Wang, Australian Children’s Laureate 2022–23, then spoke with Mark Wang, CEO of the Chinese Museum, about the nature of her craft. 

Associate Professor Kristen Sharp, Associate Dean of RMIT University School of Art spoke at the launch as part of the partnership and Rachael Ratican also spoke on behalf of the Australian Government, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, supporting an exhibition, Through Time and Space, which aims to particularly include graduates from China who have studied at an Australian university.

Join us for The Arts Collective — Artists’ Monthly Talks Schedule:
29 May 2–3pm: Jun Bin Lee — Ah Chan, Cabinet Maker
26 June 2–3pm: John Youngm — Visual artist
31 July 2–3pm: Grace Feng Fang Juan — Writer, film maker and playwright
28 August 2–3pm: Tony Ayres — Producer
25 September 2–3pm: Wang Zheng-Ting — Composer and performer
27 November 2–3pm: Alice Pung & Sher Rill Ng — Author and Illustrator

Images: CEO of the Chinese Museum Mark Wang launching the Arts Collective; Associate Dean Fine Art Kristen Sharp speaking on behalf of RMIT School of Art at the launch; The Jun Bin Lee and his musical group Ah Chan: The Cabinet Maker performing at the launch; Award winning Children’s author Gabrielle Wang in a Q&A with Mark Wang