Gallery at the CCBA

It was our Chinatown run today starting with Swim Lessons. We headed over to Moh Goon afterward with take out from Jook Sing Cafe. We wanted to get a bunch of Sampan's because Noah got his picture in there for the Kite Festival.
All this food was being bought and things being moved about. There was some sort of event or meeting in the conference room. I asked a friend what was going on and it turned out there was some sort of Gallery opening there. It was 12:08, the gallery opened at 1pm. Should I check it out? Could my kids last that long?
I decided that I should... for the blog.

I did check it out by myself for a few minutes and then I had to leave, which means I sort of had to almost spy instead of just actually attend the event. There weren't any flyers or anything. I wasn't sure if it was just one artist or a group of artists but there were photographs, ink paintings, sketches and Calligraphy, some nudes, some portraits, mostly landscapes. Some animals.

One stood out thaat hada very flat Japanese postcard like sun but a strong Chinese Looking eagle. If I had money, I would have gotten that one, if it were for sale.

It occurred to me looking around that with all the talk of Chinatown being gentrified by rich yuppy entrepreneur types, none of the audience was that type at all. Everyone was Chinese and old, except me. If I was a rich yuppy living in Chinatown I would totally want to throw around some cash and get that eagle for my apartment or Condo and be like, "I know that Chinese artist. He's from down the block." or whatever.  In fact I would probably have bought SOMETHING even if I didn't want it because the whole idea is just cool. How expensive could that thing have been?

We have to work on this whole adapting to the gentrification thing and using it to Chinatown's advantage when possible.

"Is some of your work up here?" asked Tong How Jerng, the old principal of the Kwong Kow School, and the principal while I was there.
Actually I used to have some ink paintings of mountains up at the house. I copied a black and white photograph of mountains that was taken to look like an ink painting. I added a few mountains so it wasn't an exact copy. But the effect was that it looked really nice even though it was ink on paper, not even rice paper but something like packing paper. Grace got a bamboo frame for it which made it look even better. She later destroyed it in a rage. It only took like 10 minutes to paint but I have yet to replace it. I laughed at Tong How Jerng's suggestion and shook my head.

"Oh I though maybe you do Kung Fu and painting. Yau da duk, yau wak duk." she said.
Part of me maybe that should be a new ambition of mine. To get paintings of mine in the CCBA. After all, nobody ever pulled there knee ink painting.

I eaves dropped on one artist talking about how he had started painting a quarter of his painting and then suddenly went back down to complete the last three fourths after having an inspiration and doing the painting ( landscape like ink painting that was also somewhat abstract) completing the painting in an hour.

I asked for his card. He wrote Check Pui in a general card for the Chinese American Fine Arts Society. Again, I'm not sure if he was the only artist or even what the event was about. Should I call him and ask?

It would have been nice to have some pictures to go with this post.
 Why haven't I figured out that I need to bring my camera around with me all the time. I mean most people my age have the camera phone. But I keep forgetting that even if I'm not looking for a story in Chinatown, there will inevitably be one.

"Do you still know how to write your name in Chinese?" Tong How jerng walked me over to the sign in and I was tested in this way too. The reason I still know how to write my name has to do with how easy it is to write. Shao and Dai's are harder. I guess I should start them on that. I can teach them something even if I can't teach the  whole language.