FIRST SATURDAY PDX
  • Spring Fundraiser Banquet Lunch/ Auction 18 FEB, 2023
  • Upcoming Presentation 4 March, 2023
  • Welcome to First Saturday PDX
  • CURRENT SEASON 2022 - 2023
    • Quick Preview of Season 2022 - 2023
    • Season Schedule (2022 - 2023)
    • A Visit to the Soreng Gallery of Chinese Art ​at the ​Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art​, 10 September, 2022
    • ​China’s Last Imperial Frontier: Late Qing Expansion in Sichuan’s Tibetan Borderlands 15 October, 2022
    • Girls with Big Ideas: Gidget and Song of Youth 5 November, 2022
    • * DIM SUM/ YUM CHA BRUNCH!! 19 November, 2022 *
    • Following the Thread: China Along the Road of Silk 3 December, 2022
    • The Chinese Massacre in Hells Canyon 7 January 2023
    • Spring Fundraiser Banquet Lunch/ Auction 18 FEB, 2023
    • Inscribing Chinese Gardens: The Origins of Shutiaoshi 书条石 4 March, 2023
  • THE FIRST 20 YEARS
  • PAST SEASONS & PROGRAMS
    • Past Seasons & Program Highlights >
      • Season 2021 - 2022 >
        • Quick Preview of Season 2021 - 2022
        • Season Schedule 2021 - 2022
        • The Oregon Chinese Diaspora Project, 2 October 2021
        • Connecting to our Natural World: The Portland Botanical Gardens, 6 November 2021
        • Lan Su Chinese Garden: ​The Vision of a Classical Chinese Garden, 4 December 2021
        • ​Re-visioning ​Chinese History, ​900-1350: ​The New Look of Song and Yuan, 8 January, 2022
        • Chinese New Year 2022/ Year of the Tiger 4720, 5 February, 2022
        • Auspicious Seals and Chops, 5 February 2022
        • The Erhu and Erhu Music, 5 March, 2022
        • Pictorial Naturalism and "Truth": Contextualizing the Eleventh-century Luohan Sculptures of Lingyan Temple in China, 2 April, 2022
        • Celebrated Stories in Sichuan Shadow Theater,7 May, 2022
        • The Daode Jing's Forgotten Forebear: The Ancestral Cult 4 June, 2022
      • 2020 - 2021 Season >
        • Quick Preview of Season 2020 - 2021
        • Season Schedule 2020 - 2021
        • Collecting Under Socialism: Philately in 1950s China, 12 September, 2020
        • Myriad Treasures: Celebrating the Reinstallation of the Soreng Gallery of Chinese Art Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art, 3 October, 2020
        • The Real Mulan? Tales of a Female Rebel in 18th century China 7 November, 2020
        • Spice it Up! ​How the Chile Pepper Flavored Chinese Culture 5 December, 2020
        • A Century of Collecting Chinese Painting at Oberlin College 9 January, 2021 ​
        • Chinese New Year 2021/ Year of the Ox 4719
        • Artistic Exchange Between China and Europe in the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries 6 March, 2021
        • The Scholar’s Retreat: Loss and Resilience in the Chinese Landscape and Garden 3 April 2021
        • Simmering, Whisking, Steeping: Methods for Preparing and Consuming Tea in Premodern China
        • Silk and Sericulture: Beauty Inspired by a Social Contract
      • 2019 - 2020 Season >
        • Quick Preview of Season 2019 - 2020
        • Season Schedule 2019 - 2020
        • Mawangdui: The Tomb of China’s Sleeping Beauty, 7 December 2019
        • Field Notes from Sichuan: Learning To Be a Foreigner, 5 October 2019
        • In Search of Korean Liberation in China, 2 November 2019
        • From an Architect's Perspective: 3, 5, 7, 9 Column Halls: Status and Hierarchy in a Confucius Society, 7 December 2019
        • China Under the Covers - ​A Bookbinder’s Journey to the Roots of Books 11 January, 2020
        • Lunar New Year Lunch, 1 February, 2020
        • Early Phonetic Rendering Schemes for Chinese Characters, 7 March 2020
        • The Garden of Elk Rock at Bishop's Close, 4 April 2020
      • 2018 - 2019 Season >
        • Quick Preview of Season 2018 - 2019
        • Season Schedule 2018 - 2019
        • Notable Women of Portland, 8 September 2018
        • Mooncakes: A Hallmark of Tradition of the Mid-Autumn Festival, 6 October 2018
        • Music: A Universal Language for Healing and Touching the Soul, 3 November 2018
        • China: In the Pursuit of Happiness, 1 December 2019
        • Babur's Gardens: An Illustrated Introduction, 5 January 2019
        • Chinese New Year Lunch 2 February, 2019
        • Living with Penjing: Three Dimensional Poetry, 2 March 2019
        • Discovering the Intellectual and Sensory Essences of Chinese Literati Gardens, 6 April 2019
        • Sino-Japanese Cultural Connections in the Yuan Dynasty, 4 May 2019 ​​
      • 2017 - 2018 Season >
        • Quick Preview of Season 2017 - 2018
        • Season Schedule 2017 - 2018
        • Developing Patronage: Chinese and Asian Pacific Heritage, 9 September 2017
        • Every Plant Has a Story to Tell: Bamboo, 7 October 2017
        • Wonders to Enjoy: Chinese Snuff Bottles, 4 November 2017
        • Sichuan Shadow Theater: Messages from Hell Courts, 2 December 2017
        • Legacy of the Qing Manchu Culture: The Sibe of Northwest China, 6 January 2018
        • Chinese New Year Brunch, 3 February 2018
        • Classical Tradition: Ancient Musical Instruments of China, 3 March 2018
        • Welcome to First Saturday PDX
        • Ancient Traders of the Silk Road: The Uyghur People of Xinjiang, 7 April 2018
        • "Poetic Exposition on Heaven and Earth": A Third-Century Chinese Verse on How the Cosmos Began, 28 April 2018
        • Word Play: The Art of Xu Bing, 2 June 2018
      • 2016 - 2017 Season >
        • Quick Preview of Season 2016 - 2017
        • Season Schedule 2016 - 2017
        • Contemporary Chinese Society: A View from the Films of Zhang Yimou, 6 May 2017
        • Chinese New Year Brunch, 4 February 2017
        • The Uyghurs: History of a People at the Center of Asia, Part 1, 4 March 2017
        • Creating a Tea Aesthetic ​in Tang Verse, 3 June 2017
      • 2015 - 2016 Season >
        • Season Schedule 2015 - 2016
        • Guzheng and Erhu: A Dialog Between the Strings, 2 April 2016
      • 2014 - 2015 Season >
        • Season Schedule 2014 - 2015
      • 2013 - 2014 Season
      • 2012 - 2013 Season
      • 2011 - 2012 Season
      • 2010 - 2011 Season
      • 2009 - 2010 Season
      • 2008 - 2009 Season
      • 2007 - 2008 Season
      • 2006 - 2007 Season
      • 2005 - 2006 Season
  • Videos
  • Partners
  • Join our Email List/ Contact Us
  • Zoom!
  • Stop Asian Hate Resources

​​

​PAST SEASONS


​Welcome to the First Saturday PDX program archive!


With over 190 programs since 2001, we are pleased to highlight a few of our amazing presentations, just keep scrolling and clicking.

​Links to past seasons are in the images below.
Our Stop Asian Hate Resources information is available here
​

Videos of Past Programs
Upcoming Presentation
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Please click on an image for program summaries and schedule details for the represented season .

Season 2021 - 2022
Season 2020 - 2021
2019 - 2020 Season
2018 - 2019 Season
2017 - 2018 Season
2016 - 2017 Season
2015 - 2016 Season
2014 - 2015 Season
2013 - 2014 Season
2012 - 2013 Season
2011 - 2012 Season
2010 - 2011 Season
2009 - 2010 Season
2008 - 2009 Season
2007 - 2008 Season
2006 - 2007 Season
2005 - 2006 Season

Highlights of Past Programs
The Erhu and Erhu Music 
Jerry Lin, PhD

March 5, 2022

The Erhu is a two stringed  bowed musical instrument, with a distinctly expressive and melodic sound.  First appearing in China in the Tang Dynasty, it can be traced back to proto-Mongolic instruments. We listen to the lyrical music of the erhu, and hear about its history and place in musical tradition and the Chinese Orchestra.  
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Collecting Under Socialism:  Philately in 1950's China 
Wendy Larson, PhD
12 September, 2020  

The world of stamp collecting in Socialist China. China has a long history of collecting, including birds, insects, flowers, stamps, art, and later, Mao badges. 
When the People’s Republic of China was established in 1949, collectors rethought their activities in the new political environment. In this talk, Dr Wendy Larson introduces the contentious debates among stamp collectors in the 1950's, which focused on both the dangers and pleasures of the hobby.

Mawangdui: The Tomb of China’s Sleeping Beauty
Maihwa Frances Li
September 7, 2019 

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Carefully sealed and untouched since the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC - 9 AD), the tomb at Mawangdui held the well-preserved ​
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body of Lady Dai, the wife of the Marquis who governed that region.  Maihwa Frances Li shows us numerous artifacts which accompanied the body, as well as nearby tombs of the Marquis and a possible son.

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Notable Women of Portland
Tracy Prince & Zadie Schoffer

September 8, 2018 

Based on their recent book, Notable Women of Portland (Images of America), the authors will uncover overlooked parts of Portland history by focusing on women who shaped Oregon.  ​​
While highlighting Chinese American stories, there will also be references to more than 10,000 years of the contributions of  women in Native American, pioneer, Progressive Era, World War I, World War II, and post-war history, as well as arts and politics. ​

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Contemporary Chinese Society:
A View from the Films of Zhang Yimou

Dr. Wendy Larson
May 6, 2017      ​​
Zhang Yimou (1951-), who directed the spectacular opening ceremonies of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, is one of China’s most acclaimed cinematographers.  His films, such as Raise the Red Lantern, Happy Times, and Hero, revolutionized   Chinese cinema and are often closely connected to issues within Chinese society.  This lecture will trace the links between several of his films and such issues.

The Ginkgo:  
​A Living Fossil

Martin Nicholson, Curator, Hoyt Arboretum
June 4, 2016    



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A nature walk guided by the Curator of Hoyt Arboretum  to discover and focus on Hoyt’s collection of Ginkgo trees.  Along the White Pine trail, we will observe and learn about  many other tree species, including the wild, “scary” Monkey-Puzzle tree and the ancient Bristlecone Pine.

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Guardians of the Dharma ...
​or of the Empire?

Dr. Ann Wetherell, Art History,
​PSU and Willamette University

June 13, 2015
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​How exciting is it to come across a worthy work of art which has been languishing and not fully acknowledged? 
 Dr. Ann Wetherell discusses and explores an unpublished hand scroll of Buddhist luohans (stream crossers) in the collection at Pacific University.  Signed by the professional artist Zhou Xun (1649-1729), who worked in Nanjing in the early part of the Qing dynasty, this energetic painting has much in common with the gently humorous images of luohans that gained popularity in the late Ming and Qing periods.  However, aspects of this painting, in light of the biography of the artist, suggest a darker message of protest against the Manchu state.


Nurture and Healing: Chinese Medicine for Summer
Dr. Elise Wong

June 14, 2014

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Traditional Chinese medicine is a broad range of medicinal practices sharing common concepts developed in China and based on a tradition of more than 2,000 years, 
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including various forms of herbal medicine, acupuncture, massage, exercise and dietary therapy.  Such doctrines are rooted in books such as the “Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon” (1st century BCE) and the “Treatise on Cold Damage,” as well as in cosmological notions about yin-yang and the five phases.  Starting in the 1950s, these precepts were standardized in the People's Republic of China.  Like much of Chinese heritage, its medicinal arts are linked closely to nature, the environment, and a respect for the different seasons.  Discover its historical philosophy of treating the individual rather than the disease through insight and nurturing; and how practices, while carried forward, have evolved between the pre- and current Communist eras.  This lecture will focus on Chinese medicine for summer.

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Carving Authority and Creating History
Lu Kesi (Dan Lucas)
September 14, 2013


For over 3,000 continuous years in China, chops, or seals, have been used in lieu of signatures on personal and official documents, contracts, and art for acknowledgment or authorship.  The earliest known seals date from the Shang Dynasty (1600- 1046 BCE).  By the Han Dynasty (206 BCE-220 AD), they were an essential part of Chinese culture and eventually spread to Korea and Japan.  Seals are carved from various materials and used with red cinnabar paste.  The carving and collecting of chops was a part of the Chinese literati milieu.

The Porcelain of China: Window into Chinese Gardens
Michael Riley

April 7, 2012


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Dr. Michael Riley shares his perspectives of the porcelains of the Qing Dynasty as icons of Chinese culture by looking at the depiction of nature and garden scenes on them.  Through the evolutionary use of designs, traditional forms, colors, glazes, enameling techniques, symbolism, and iconography, the unique characteristics of the Chinese culture are revealed.

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Lingnan Gardens:
Another Regional Garden Style of Southern China

Ina Asim

May 7, 2011

​Dr. Ina Asim, a University of Oregon professor who has studied gardens in China for years, presents the Lingnan Gardens, built along the Pearl River delta and coastal areas of Guangdong province in southern China. Endowed with a unique climate, this area is a school of its own in terms of language, theatre, music, painting, and arts and crafts,  Lingnan Gardens reflect their local traditional culture and are unique in their architecture, layout, and ornamentations.

Music in a Literati Garden:
​An Echo from the Human Heart to Nature

Juwen Zhang

October 2, 2010
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Dr. Juwen Zhang of Willamette University discusses ancient Chinese music and gardens: “catch the lasting rhythmic qi and the rare sound in an effort to keep a calm heart distant within the surrounding clamor.”  Dr. Zhang explains how artistic pursuits in poetry, painting, calligraphy, and gardens developed into one entity a millennium ago, and embodied the core beliefs and values in Chinese culture.  Following the talk, Dr. Zhang inconspicuously plays ancient wind instruments in the Garden.

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The Literati Studios: Perspectives, Insights, Implements and Connoisseurship
Donald Jenkins, Curator Emeritus for Asian Art,
​Portland Art Museum 

March 7, 2009
Donald Jenkins will share with us the unique ideals of a Chinese Scholar during the Ming and early Qing periods, what items they valued and used, and other accoutrements which they collected in their private studies.  Very importantly, the significances of these many different objects and implements will be noted.

​Chinese Opera in Portland
Mary Leong
March 1, 2008
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During the Tang Dynasty, Emperor Taizong established an opera school with the poetic name, Liyuan, or Pear Garden.  

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To this day, operatic professionals are still referred to as “Disciples of the Pear Garden.”  Mary Leong, a fourth generation Chinese resident of Portland, introduces us to Chinese Opera in Portland.  She reminisces about the plots, costumes, makeup, colors, dances, acrobatics, and the distinctive dialectical music unique to the Chinese opera.

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​All of Nature’s Splendors: Some Thoughts on Chinese Gardens, Past and Present
Kevin Greenwood

March 3, 2007

The topic covers the key traditional ideals of a Chinese garden, which are reflective of cosmological concepts and literati ideals.  In addition, it touches upon how the Qing Imperial gardens broadened these themes in a more overtly political realm.  The presentation concludes with some thoughts on modern Chinese gardens in North America (like Lansuyuan) and further interpretations of how they add to China’s centuries’ old garden traditions. 

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Scroll:
​Read the Landscape

Peter Eddy, PhD

February 4, 2006
​The ubiquitous calligraphy over the Moon Gate, “Read the Landscape” or “Read the Painting” is always intriguing to the visitors of the Garden.    Dr. Eddy, one of the Lan Su Chinese Garden's original docents, will reinforce the understanding of this ancient metaphor by digitally unrolling the hand scroll, “Colorful Lanterns at Shangyuan” (currently on exhibit in the Boathouse pavilion) just as the Chinese literati would when sharing such a prized possession with a few close friends in his private studio.  By exploring an antique and penjing market, we will gain insights as to what a scholar-official might envy or procure for his Study to complement his garden and his Four Treasures. 

​Our instructive programs are developed with support from PSU’s Institute for Asian Studies, Northwest China Council and Lan Su Chinese Garden.  Our programs are free and open to the public.​​  For further information on our upcoming presentations, visit our  Current Season (2021 - 2022) page and view  our schedule.    ​​
For our regular monthly presentations, we are located here (click on address for directions):  
Portland State University, Academic & Student Recreation Ctr (ASRC), Room 230 (Second Floor)
1800 SW 6th Ave
, Portland, OR  97201
There is excellent MAX and bus transportation by the venue.  There is also a nearby parking structure at SW 6th and Harrison with an entrance on 6th Avenue.
View PSU Parking info:  

https://www.pdx.edu/transportation/hourly-visitor-parking
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​© 2014 - 2023  First Saturday PDX
  • Spring Fundraiser Banquet Lunch/ Auction 18 FEB, 2023
  • Upcoming Presentation 4 March, 2023
  • Welcome to First Saturday PDX
  • CURRENT SEASON 2022 - 2023
    • Quick Preview of Season 2022 - 2023
    • Season Schedule (2022 - 2023)
    • A Visit to the Soreng Gallery of Chinese Art ​at the ​Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art​, 10 September, 2022
    • ​China’s Last Imperial Frontier: Late Qing Expansion in Sichuan’s Tibetan Borderlands 15 October, 2022
    • Girls with Big Ideas: Gidget and Song of Youth 5 November, 2022
    • * DIM SUM/ YUM CHA BRUNCH!! 19 November, 2022 *
    • Following the Thread: China Along the Road of Silk 3 December, 2022
    • The Chinese Massacre in Hells Canyon 7 January 2023
    • Spring Fundraiser Banquet Lunch/ Auction 18 FEB, 2023
    • Inscribing Chinese Gardens: The Origins of Shutiaoshi 书条石 4 March, 2023
  • THE FIRST 20 YEARS
  • PAST SEASONS & PROGRAMS
    • Past Seasons & Program Highlights >
      • Season 2021 - 2022 >
        • Quick Preview of Season 2021 - 2022
        • Season Schedule 2021 - 2022
        • The Oregon Chinese Diaspora Project, 2 October 2021
        • Connecting to our Natural World: The Portland Botanical Gardens, 6 November 2021
        • Lan Su Chinese Garden: ​The Vision of a Classical Chinese Garden, 4 December 2021
        • ​Re-visioning ​Chinese History, ​900-1350: ​The New Look of Song and Yuan, 8 January, 2022
        • Chinese New Year 2022/ Year of the Tiger 4720, 5 February, 2022
        • Auspicious Seals and Chops, 5 February 2022
        • The Erhu and Erhu Music, 5 March, 2022
        • Pictorial Naturalism and "Truth": Contextualizing the Eleventh-century Luohan Sculptures of Lingyan Temple in China, 2 April, 2022
        • Celebrated Stories in Sichuan Shadow Theater,7 May, 2022
        • The Daode Jing's Forgotten Forebear: The Ancestral Cult 4 June, 2022
      • 2020 - 2021 Season >
        • Quick Preview of Season 2020 - 2021
        • Season Schedule 2020 - 2021
        • Collecting Under Socialism: Philately in 1950s China, 12 September, 2020
        • Myriad Treasures: Celebrating the Reinstallation of the Soreng Gallery of Chinese Art Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art, 3 October, 2020
        • The Real Mulan? Tales of a Female Rebel in 18th century China 7 November, 2020
        • Spice it Up! ​How the Chile Pepper Flavored Chinese Culture 5 December, 2020
        • A Century of Collecting Chinese Painting at Oberlin College 9 January, 2021 ​
        • Chinese New Year 2021/ Year of the Ox 4719
        • Artistic Exchange Between China and Europe in the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries 6 March, 2021
        • The Scholar’s Retreat: Loss and Resilience in the Chinese Landscape and Garden 3 April 2021
        • Simmering, Whisking, Steeping: Methods for Preparing and Consuming Tea in Premodern China
        • Silk and Sericulture: Beauty Inspired by a Social Contract
      • 2019 - 2020 Season >
        • Quick Preview of Season 2019 - 2020
        • Season Schedule 2019 - 2020
        • Mawangdui: The Tomb of China’s Sleeping Beauty, 7 December 2019
        • Field Notes from Sichuan: Learning To Be a Foreigner, 5 October 2019
        • In Search of Korean Liberation in China, 2 November 2019
        • From an Architect's Perspective: 3, 5, 7, 9 Column Halls: Status and Hierarchy in a Confucius Society, 7 December 2019
        • China Under the Covers - ​A Bookbinder’s Journey to the Roots of Books 11 January, 2020
        • Lunar New Year Lunch, 1 February, 2020
        • Early Phonetic Rendering Schemes for Chinese Characters, 7 March 2020
        • The Garden of Elk Rock at Bishop's Close, 4 April 2020
      • 2018 - 2019 Season >
        • Quick Preview of Season 2018 - 2019
        • Season Schedule 2018 - 2019
        • Notable Women of Portland, 8 September 2018
        • Mooncakes: A Hallmark of Tradition of the Mid-Autumn Festival, 6 October 2018
        • Music: A Universal Language for Healing and Touching the Soul, 3 November 2018
        • China: In the Pursuit of Happiness, 1 December 2019
        • Babur's Gardens: An Illustrated Introduction, 5 January 2019
        • Chinese New Year Lunch 2 February, 2019
        • Living with Penjing: Three Dimensional Poetry, 2 March 2019
        • Discovering the Intellectual and Sensory Essences of Chinese Literati Gardens, 6 April 2019
        • Sino-Japanese Cultural Connections in the Yuan Dynasty, 4 May 2019 ​​
      • 2017 - 2018 Season >
        • Quick Preview of Season 2017 - 2018
        • Season Schedule 2017 - 2018
        • Developing Patronage: Chinese and Asian Pacific Heritage, 9 September 2017
        • Every Plant Has a Story to Tell: Bamboo, 7 October 2017
        • Wonders to Enjoy: Chinese Snuff Bottles, 4 November 2017
        • Sichuan Shadow Theater: Messages from Hell Courts, 2 December 2017
        • Legacy of the Qing Manchu Culture: The Sibe of Northwest China, 6 January 2018
        • Chinese New Year Brunch, 3 February 2018
        • Classical Tradition: Ancient Musical Instruments of China, 3 March 2018
        • Welcome to First Saturday PDX
        • Ancient Traders of the Silk Road: The Uyghur People of Xinjiang, 7 April 2018
        • "Poetic Exposition on Heaven and Earth": A Third-Century Chinese Verse on How the Cosmos Began, 28 April 2018
        • Word Play: The Art of Xu Bing, 2 June 2018
      • 2016 - 2017 Season >
        • Quick Preview of Season 2016 - 2017
        • Season Schedule 2016 - 2017
        • Contemporary Chinese Society: A View from the Films of Zhang Yimou, 6 May 2017
        • Chinese New Year Brunch, 4 February 2017
        • The Uyghurs: History of a People at the Center of Asia, Part 1, 4 March 2017
        • Creating a Tea Aesthetic ​in Tang Verse, 3 June 2017
      • 2015 - 2016 Season >
        • Season Schedule 2015 - 2016
        • Guzheng and Erhu: A Dialog Between the Strings, 2 April 2016
      • 2014 - 2015 Season >
        • Season Schedule 2014 - 2015
      • 2013 - 2014 Season
      • 2012 - 2013 Season
      • 2011 - 2012 Season
      • 2010 - 2011 Season
      • 2009 - 2010 Season
      • 2008 - 2009 Season
      • 2007 - 2008 Season
      • 2006 - 2007 Season
      • 2005 - 2006 Season
  • Videos
  • Partners
  • Join our Email List/ Contact Us
  • Zoom!
  • Stop Asian Hate Resources