WONDER WOMEN (WAITING fOR sanni yaka)

September 3–October 22, 2022 at Jeffrey Deitch, Los Angeles

From the Jeffrey Deitch Gallery website:

“I look at them and wonder if
They are a part of me
I look in their eyes and wonder if
They share my dreams”

Excerpt from “Wonder Woman” by Genny Lim

Genny Lim’s poem “Wonder Woman,” first published in 1981, follows the reflections of a narrator who observes the everyday lives of Asian women—across generations, countries, and socioeconomic backgrounds—wondering if their experiences reflect her own. The poem centers Asian women as its protagonists and ponders what commonalities exist between these women.

First exhibited at Jeffrey Deitch’s New York gallery in May 2022, Wonder Women, curated by Kathy Huang, presented Asian American and diasporic women and non-binary artists responding to themes of wonder, self, and identity through figuration. Described by Hyperallergic writer Jasmine Liu as a “landmark show,” the exhibition underscores a commitment to keeping “the field of Asian American figuration an open-ended one without a coherent narrative for as long as possible, to preserve its historical contingency and arbitrariness.” While some artists explore wonder as it relates to mythology and legend, others depict the heroines in their lives, offering works that highlight family, community, and history. Several of the works in Wonder Women addressed colonial and patriarchal structures in the West.

In September, an expanded version of Wonder Women was presented at Jeffrey Deitch’s Los Angeles gallery, featuring forty Asian American, Pacific Islander, and diasporic women and non-binary artists. “The increasing violence against Asian Americans, particularly against Asian women and the elderly, emphasizes the need to tell our own stories. Figuration allows the artists to present themselves, their communities, and their histories on their own terms,” says Huang. The resulting works offer a cross-section of experience that celebrates difference and points of connection at the same time.

Several of the artists in Wonder Women are friends and collaborators across cities such as New York, Los Angeles, Austin, Detroit, and Montréal.

Curator Kathy Huang is Managing Director, Art Advisory & Special Projects at Jeffrey Deitch. Photos by Willy Leach, courtesy of Jeffrey Deitch Gallery, Los Angeles.