The Basement Workshop Digital Exhibit is a series of curated capsule collections of photographs, artwork, and organizational archival documents depicting the history of the east coast’s first pan-Asian political and arts organization. What began as a small group of graduate students and young professionals of Asian descent, blossomed into a collective of activist, artists, and community members whose work and activism continue to impact not just Asian America, but the country as a whole.
This digital exhibit is intended as a starting point for learning about the long, multifaceted history of Asian American activism in the United States. While the capsule collections in this exhibit focus on the history and forms of activism taken up by members of the Basement Workshop, their work is intrinsically linked to the activism of many other Asian American organizations that rose across the US in the late 1960s until present day.
This website exists as a living exhibit, meaning that the capsule collections and themes shown will change and shift as further research on the Basement Workshop develops by the curator.
For those interested in learning about the Asian American movement, this exhibit paints a nuanced picture of who Asian American activists were, what ideologies they adhered to, and by what means their activisms took shape.
