The Asian Cultural Council is pleased to welcome our newest cohort of grantees to New York City: visual artists Cheuk Wing Nam and Arata Mino, curator Miyuki Tanaka, and performing artists Wong Ching Yan “Birdy” and Wu Chien-Wei.  This cohort was awarded fellowships between 2019-21, and ACC is thrilled to support and enable the next phases of these artists’ practices and journeys following pandemic disruption.

These five grantees will be the first group of New York Fellows to experience ACC’s newly reimagined grantee program to spur creative inspiration through open-ended exploration, participation in workshops or training programs, and focused research in New York City.  A grantee enrichment program consisting of monthly cultural experiences will bring these artists together with arts and culture institutions and individuals, through ACC’s Mentorship program pairing current grantees with ACC alumni, a new City Exploration program showcasing the diverse cultural activities and offerings in New York City, and ACC fellowship office hours providing individualized support and connecting grantees to ACC staff.

2022 Grantee Cohort meeting with ACC alumnus Enoch Cheng (ACC 2019-2020) at the Museum of Arts and Design

The program intends to foster cultural exchange and connection between grantees and with the arts and culture community in New York City, and provide structure and professional support for grantees during their grant period from July to December 2022. 

To learn more about Cheuk Wing Nam Chang, Arata Mino, Miyuki Tanaka, Wong Ching Yan “Birdy”, Wu Chien-Wei, and their fellowship programs, please continue reading below.  
 

 
Cheuk Wing Nam

Cheuk Wing Nam Grant: To pursue interdisciplinary research on interactive media, electronic arts, and experimental music in the U.S. 

Cheuk Wing Nam (also known as Chang May Wing Joy) is an interdisciplinary artist who is devoted to developing her artwork through new concepts of mixing sound and other media with modern computer technology. She graduated with a master’s degree of Visual Arts (Studio Art and Extended Media) from Hong Kong Baptist University. Cheuk has exhibited and/or performed at Sonic Environment 2016 (Brisbane, Australia), Zurich University of the Arts (ZHdK, Switzerland), XXX Gallery, 22 Degrees North, Connecting Spaces, floating projects, and Hong Kong Baptist University. She was selected to participate in the Sonic Transmission Artist Exchange Project 2016 by Contemporary Musiking Hong Kong (CMHK). Recently, her works were selected for exhibition in Art Central, Art Jakarta, and the 2021-22 Asia Society Triennial.

Website: evilagnivv.com | Instagram: @cheukwingnam | Twitter: @wingysl | Facebook: cheukwingnam

 
Arata Mino

Grant: To conduct research on the work of Edward Steichen in the archives of the Museum of Modern Art and explore contemporary visual and performing arts in New York City and beyond. 

Arata Mino was born in Fukuoka prefecture. He is an artist, photographer, and drama writer, thinking about photography through theatrical methods to create and present pieces that visualize the modern premonition of fear. Since 2010, he has served as the Artistic Director of Hippie-b, a company focused on exploring the relationship between photographs and the body, where he has handled photography, planning, and direction. Starting in 2013, he has also presented performances and exhibits under his own name.  In 2017, he founded the theatre company Nikasan and completed a doctorate at Tokyo University of Arts. 

Arata was also a participant in the Public Program of FESTIVAL/TOKYO 2012 and won multiple awards for photography, performing arts, and contemporary art in Japan, including being selected to present at the 1_WALL exhibition and winning the Aichi Art Foundation Drama Award #19 Special Prize.

Website: aratamino.com | Instagram: @aratamino | Twitter: @aRanmeno | Facebook: arata.mino.7

 
Miyuki Tanaka 

Grant: To research the intersection of visual and performing arts and design in the context of creating interdisciplinary programs for individuals with disabilities.

Miyuki Tanaka is a curator and producer. She has been working on projects that defy categorization under the theme of “disability as a perspective that redefines the world.” Through projects dealing with expressions that have yet to be valued, she rethinks the way we view and perceive expressions. Recent works include the film “Night Cruising” in 2019, “Watching Dance with Creative Audio Description and Sound” (KAAT Kanagawa Arts Theatre) from 2017 onwards, and the exhibitions "Rules?” (21_21 DESIGN SIGHT), “Ways of Telling” (Tokyo Shibuya Koen-dori Gallery), "Speaking to the Senses:  Visual Language for Theater" (KAAT Kanagawa Arts Theatre), and "Audio Game Center” from 2017 onwards.  Miyuki is also the creator of the basic concept for the Japanese Pavilion at the Osaka Expo. 

Website: miyukitanaka.net | Instagram: @miyukitanaka | Twitter: @miyukitanaka23 | Facebook: Miyuki.tanaka.23

 
Wong Ching Yan ‘Birdy’ 

Grant: To observe the latest developments in New York’s theater scene, carry out research on the societal roles of Asian women in the U.S., and explore the experience of Asian artists during the 2020 Covid-19 pandemic.

Wong Ching Yan ‘Birdy’ is the Artistic Director of the Artocrite Theater (Hong Kong Arts Development Council Grant Recipient). Birdy graduated from the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (HKAPA) with First Class Honors, majoring in Acting. In 2016, she won an Award for Young Artists from the Hong Kong Arts Development Council. Birdy won Best Actress in the Tragedy/Drama category and Best Supporting Actress at the 18th & 26th Hong Kong Drama Awards. In 2019, she won The Best Performer of the Year at the IATC(HK) Critics’ Awards. Additionally, Birdy won the Best Script nomination at the 9th Hong Kong Theatre Libre and the Best Script/Playwright of the Year at the IATC(HK) Critics Award 2018.

Facebook: Wong Ching Yan Birdy | Facebook Fan Page: 黃呈欣

 
Wu Chien-Wei 

Grant: To explore the contemporary dance scene of New York and its development in reference to the other art forms such as visual arts, music, literature, and theatre arts.

Wu Chien-Wei received his graduate degree from the Graduate Institute of Dance Performance at Taipei National University of the Arts, where he studied under Professors Lo Men-Fei, Zhang Xiao-Xiong, and Wu Su-Jun. During his career, he has been a full-time troupe member of Compagnie Käfig in France and the Taipei Crossover Dance Company in Taiwan. Today, Wu is the director of Tussock Dance Company, dividing his attention between performance and creative work, theatre, and film. 

His 2008 work Aurora won the Australian Choreography Competition Jury Honor Award, while Development and Restructuring won the 2014 Taiwan Creative Dance Competition.  Wu established Tussock Dance Company in 2013, and in the same year, the company’s inaugural work Two Bodies earned a Taishin Art Award nomination. Tussock’s second production, Embers, repeated this feat the next year. In 2017, Wu was nominated for the Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative and was one of the final five contestants in the dance category. In 2019, he received the Lo Men-Fei Dance Grant.

Instagram: @awei_wu_taiwan | Facebook: rweiwu | Company Instagram: @tussock_dance_theater | Company Facebook: THETUSSOCKDANCECOM