Kearny Street Workshop : About KSW

1972

In San Francisco's Chinatown, the International Hotel was about to be crushed by the developer's ball. One of its tenants, Kearny Street Workshop (KSW), was teaching people to make murals, print posters, to get their messages out. When I-Hotel residents refused to be evicted, KSW used paint, photography and poetry to express the community's struggle.

Today

KSW is the oldest multidisciplinary Asian Pacific American (APA) arts organization in the United States. We continue our original mission as a voice and vision for Asian Pacific American artists by offering a platform for new forms, new ideas, new ways to collaborate.

"I am so grateful to KSW for presenting art that is connected to community. The richness is awesome."
Flo Oy Wong

"Kearny Street Workshop is doing more to nurture young up-and-coming Asian American artists than any other organization in the Bay Area."
Michael Chih Ming Hornbuckle, performer, 18 Mightly Mountain Warriors

"To me, Kearny Street Workshop is like coming home."
Guilio Sorro, artist

"The class inspired me to write every day. I began, through writing, to gain a new wholeness of identity."
Emily Han Zimmerman, participant, KSW Creative Writing Program

Building Community Through Art

The mission of Kearny Street Workshop is to produce and present art that enriches and empowers Asian Pacific American communities.

Our vision is to achieve a more just society by connecting Asian Pacific American(APA) artists with community members to give voice to our cultural, historical, and contemporary issues.

Through our programs, KSW:

nurtures the creation of new and innovative artwork inspired by the APA experience
brings forth the stories of diverse communities
develops artists and leaders in the Bay Area
encourages inclusivity through collaboration and community involvement
promotes cross-cultural and intergenerational understanding and
celebrates the spirit of our community

KSW, a non-profit, community-based organization, is based in San Francisco, where the majority of our artists and clients live and work, and serves the Asian Pacific American communities of the entire Bay Area. We serve our community as an information resource and through our four areas of arts programming: Adult arts education, Next Generation arts support and training, Multidisciplinary arts presentations, and publications.

KSW uses music, performance, words and images to empower and enrich the people of the Bay Area. Can art-making help achieve a more just society? KSW believes it can.

Be challenged. Be transformed.

Imagine.

KSW exhibitions delve into our immigrant history, our cultural identities, our hidden stories. Multi-disciplinary projects use music, dance, spoken word, technology and other media to interpret themes of Asian Pacific American life. Flo Oy Wong's exhibition "made in usa: Angel Island Shhh" explores the identity secrets of the Chinese immigrants interrogated at Angel Island Immigration Station. In "atlas(t)," KSW and Galería de la Raza use contemporary media to map the territory of Asian and Latino experience.

Explore.

KSW's small press brings to light stories seldom heard. Our publications are recognized for excellence. "The Book of Perception" by poet Truong Tran and photographer Chung Hoang Chuong was a finalist for the Kiriyama Pacific Rim Book Proze. "Heaven is Just Another Country" by Jaime Jacinto was a finalist for the Bay Area Book Reviewers Association Award.

Connect.

Join us for monthly presentations by KSW-Next, KSW's training ground and network for our community's young artists. KSW-Next members curate and organize our annual festival, "APAture, A Window on the Art of Young Asian Pacific Americans," one of the nation's largest gatherings of emerging APA artists. In the wider KSW community, our multiple generations of artists offer lively exchange, mentoring and collaboration.

Take a chance.

Learn something new. KSW's writing workshops and arts classes let you hone your talent and meet established artists who have paved the way to Asian Pacific American art and literature. Speak up -- by writing and sharing poetry and prose that reflect your world. In addition to class readings, KSW collaborates with the San Francisco Arts Commission Chinatown Community Arts Program to present quarterly readings.

Speak up.

What do you have to say about life on the Pacific edge? Come to see. Come to contribute. Come and be part of the art.

» Learn about KSW's history...