Who We Are and What We Do
Column by: Yichien Cooper, AACIG Chair
Have you ever wondered what the AACIG Board does? Although AACIG just celebrated its 5th year of establishment, AACIG is considered a highly productive Interest Group—all thanks to a very active and devoted Board and supportive members. The following summarizes ACCIG’s annual activities and outcomes that support the NAEA Strategic Vision:
AACIG 2021–2022 Fiscal Year Major Accomplishments
AACIG built partnerships with the NAEA Divisions to promote inspiring, practical, and culturally relevant activities and events. AACIG collaborated with the NAEA ED&I Commission and the National Consortium of Teaching About Asia in selecting and facilitating invited speakers at the NAEA 2022 Convention in New York. The speakers included Bahar Behbahani, John Carpenter, and Nancy Steinhardt.
AACIG recognized a distinguished researcher in the field of art education who demonstrates profound interest in advocating for Asian art and culture and exemplifies excellence in the profession. The distinguished speaker’s body of work is culturally responsive and provides transformative applications emphasizing inclusive practices for teaching and researching Asian art and culture. The 2022 AACIG Distinguished Researcher in Asian Art and Culture Education was Doug Blandy, professor emeritus in the College of Design and core faculty in the Folklore and Public Culture program at the University of Oregon, for his ChinaVine project and ongoing research on cross-cultural art education, material culture, and preserving disappearing community cultures. On March 4, 2022, Blandy delivered his presentation, Experiencing China’s Cultural Heritage: Deep Listening and Lessons From the Field, at the NAEA Convention.
In 2021, AACIG expanded its online publication by adding a Best Practice section and published the lesson plan Printmaking and Textile Printing Based on Iranian/Indian Traditional Textile Printing—Ghalamkari.
In 2022, AACIG launched a pilot newsletter for membership building. The content includes suggested readings, celebrational acknowledgements, upcoming NAEA events, and research topics associated with Asian art, culture, and philosophy.
AACIG participated in quarterly meetings with other Interest Group leaders, attended Delegates Assembly, and the 2022 NAEA National Leadership Conference in Utah.
AACIG welcomes Chair-Elect, 2022–2023, Ryan Shin, professor of art and visual culture education at University of Arizona; and AACIG Secretary, Eunjin Kim, PhD Candidate, Department of Art Education, The Pennsylvania State University.
Columnist Division: Led by Debrah Sickler-Voigt, the AACIG Columnist Division presented strategies to support AAPI teachers, students, and community members. During the past fiscal year, the AACIG Columnist Division published five NAEA News columns:
Doug Blandy’s “Lessons Learned: Interpreting China’s Cultural Heritage—Part 2”
Doug Blandy’s “Lessons Learned: Interpreting China’s Cultural Heritage—Part 1”
Kyungeun Lim’s “Practicing Asian American and Pacific Islander Art and Culture Through Cultural Wealth and Capital Theory”
Meng-Yung Yang’s “Cultivating Students’ Media Literacy Through Inspirations of AAPI Representations in Animated Cartoons”
Meng-Jung Yang and Kyungeun Lim’s “Building Deeper Understandings of Asian American/Pacific Islander Art and Culture Through Art Inquiry”
Curriculum Resource Division: Headed by Kevin Hsieh, the AACIG Curriculum Resource Division published Volume 4, Issues 1 and 2 in May and September 2022. All articles are open access via https://www.aacig.orgoffsite link.
Outreach Division: Streamlined by Sandrine Han, the AACIG Outreach Division regularly updates AACIG’s website, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and NAEA Collaborate forum. Currently, the AACIG Facebook group has 223 members; AACIG’s Collaborate forum has 107 members.
Conference Division: Organized by Ryan Shin and Min Gu, the 2022 NAEA Convention included two forums and three other presentations by AACIG during the NAEA 2022 Convention, including Zodiac Wheelies; Addressing Anti-Asian Racism and Social Justice in Art Education; Our West Meets the East: Traditional Asian Ink Painting; Holding Space for Asian American and Pacific Islander Conversations; and AACIG Forum II: Teaching Contemporary Asian Art Connecting the East and the West.
Membership Division: Coordinated by Ahran Koo, AACIG underlines online and offline approaches about recruitment and sustainability of memberships that align with the NAEA Strategic Vision ED&I super-pillar.
Proposal Review Division: Led by Oksun Lee, the Proposal Review Division completed a review of 15 AACIG proposals for the 2023 NAEA Convention. Additional proposal reviewers include Ahran Koo and Hyunji Kwon.
Looking Ahead: AACIG recently established its Professional Development Division and its Student Division to provide more services to our members. Furthermore, AACIG will call for several Board positions, including two Outreach Coordinators and a Curriculum Resource Editor.
Moving forward, we hope you continue supporting AACIG in building a vibrant teaching and learning community through Asian art and culture.
Debrah C. Sickler-Voigt, AACIG Column Editor Professor of Art Education, Middle Tennessee State University. Email: arteducation.us@gmail.com
Yichien Cooper, AACIG Chair Lecturer and Field Supervisor, College of Education, Washington State University Tri-Cities. Email: yichiencooper@gmail.com