LONGING BELONGING ✿ 100 YEARS 100 STORIES
Long Time No See at Varley Art Gallery of Markham
May 13 – Sept 3, 2023
About the Project ✿ 关于这次活动 ✿ 關於這次活
Over the past several decades immigration has increased to suburban areas: Scarborough, Markham, Richmond Hill and Newmarket, while bypassing the older downtown Chinatowns. In the summer of 2022, LTNS was invited to create an exhibition for the Varley Art Gallery of Markham.
数十年来，多伦多近郊（如士嘉堡、万锦、列治文山）逐渐取代市中心的老唐人街成为了华人移民的首选。在2022年夏天，“好久不见”被邀请为万锦市的瓦利美术馆创作展览。
數十年來，多倫多近郊（如士嘉堡、萬錦、列治文山）逐漸取代市中心的老唐人街成為了華人移民的首選。在2022年夏天，“好久不見”被邀請為萬錦市的瓦利美術館創作展覽。
What happens when Chinatown goes to the suburbs?
当唐人街转到城郊时会发生什么？
當唐人街轉到城郊時會發生什麼？
LTNS members engaged with the suburban communities about their lives and experiences settling and growing up outside of downtown, interviewing and photographing them at places they felt gave them a sense of belonging. Common themes emerged: food, family, culture, ancestry, and community.
“好久不见”的成员拜访了城郊的社区居民们，了解他们在市中心外定居和成长的生活经历，并在他们心中有归属感的地点进行了采访与拍摄。 于是共通的主题浮现了：食物、家庭、文化、家系和社区。
“好久不見”的成員拜訪了城郊的社區居民們，了解他們在市中心外定居和成長的生活經歷，並在他們心中有歸屬感的地點進行了採訪與拍攝。於是共通的主題浮現了：食物、家庭、文化、家系和社區。
On the hundredth anniversary of the Chinese Exclusion Act, this exhibition, LONGING BELONGING ✿ 100 YEARS 100 STORIES asks us all in to reflect on: “what is remembered?”, “what is forgotten?”, “what is our role in reconciliation?”, “how do we belong?”
在《排华法案》实施一百周年之际， 此次“向往与归属 * 百年移民故事”展览邀请我们反思：“什么被纪念？”“什么被遗忘？”“我们在和解中扮演什么角色？”“我们如何归属？”
在《排華法案》實施一百週年之際， 此次“嚮往與歸屬 * 百年移民故事”展覽邀請我們反思：“什麼被紀念？”“什麼被遺忘？”“我們在和解中扮演什麼角色？”“我們如何歸屬？”
Canada’s troubled colonialist history included the 1923 Chinese Immigration (Exclusion) Act, which deemed people of Chinese descent “unsuitable for citizenship” and would prevent entry into Canada by people of Chinese heritage for 24 years. As a result of the Exclusion Act husbands were separated from wives, parents were separated from their children. It was not until 1967 that race-based discrimination was legally removed.
加拿大殖民历史包括1923年实施的《華人移民法》（又称《排华法案》）。该法认为华裔 “不适合入籍”，并在24年间禁止华裔入境加拿大。《排华法案》迫使夫妻、亲子分离。而这样基于种族的歧视直到1967年才被从法条中删除
加拿大殖民歷史包括1923年實施的《華人移民法》（又稱《排華法案》）。該法認為華裔 “不適合入籍”，並在24年間禁止華裔入境加拿大。 《排華法案》迫使夫妻、親子分離。而這樣基於種族的歧視直到1967年才被從法條中刪除。
Acknowledgements
Longing Belonging ✿ 100 Years 100 Stories a community engagement project and exhibition organized by the collective Long Time No See (LTNS), tackles Canada’s troubled colonialist history by marking the 100th anniversary of the Chinese Exclusion Act. LTNS members engaged with local Markham communities, interviewing and photographing people in spaces that elicited sentiments of belonging, gathering images and stories to be presented in the gallery.
It is important to note that 2023 is also the centenary of the signing of The Williams Treaties—bureaucratic legislation signed by the Government of Canada and seven First Nations resulting in the surrender of the final portion of southern Ontario territory to the Canadian Government, including the land that the Varley Art Gallery sits on today.
With this project, LTNS asks us all to reflect on the questions:
What is our place on this land? What is remembered? What is forgotten? What is our role in reconciliation? How do we all belong?
Longing Belonging ✿ 100 Years 100 Stories is presented by the Varley Art Gallery Markham in partnership with Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival. The project is curated by Long Time No See and coordinated by Brenda Joy Lem and Anik Glaude. It is funded in part by the Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council, the Varley-McKay Art Foundation of Markham, and the City of Markham.
Long Time No See 