USAAF 2017: Threading Resilience

USAAF highlights artists working across a wide range of disciplines, including theater, music, dance, film, literature, visual arts, and interdisciplinary practices. The festival aims to increase the visibility of Pacific Islander and Asian American artists while nurturing and empowering them to build sustainable artistic practices with meaningful community impact.

This year’s theme, Threading Resilience, examines the ways Pacific Islander and Asian American communities have cultivated strength, visibility, and connection through art, culture, and collective action. The featured works explore questions:

• How have identity and visibility for Pacific Islanders and Asian Americans evolved in art and politics, and where are these narratives headed?

• What intersections and collaborations across art, identity, and political movements have connected and strengthened our communities in the face of systemic oppression and underrepresentation in mainstream culture and media?

• How have we practiced placemaking throughout our histories, and what will it take to ensure the survival and sustainability of these vital cultural spaces for future generations?