Overhead view of the Asian American Resource Center

Asian American Resource Center Exhibits

The AARC’s Community Art Exhibit Program displays artworks year round that celebrate the diverse and dynamic cultural heritage, history, identity and creativity of Asian American Pacific Islanders. Exhibits are displayed on a quarterly schedule.

Current Exhibits and Programs

Migration and Integration | On-View May 2 through June 6, 2026

Collage of textile pieces from Migration and Integration exhibit

The AARC presents our Heritage Month Exhibit: Migration and Integration, curated by Mai Deguchi, featuring five Asian Texan artists: Carme Pena, Ashley Adams, Emily Weerts, Evie Thompson, and Anna Pham, who all present their work in different settings that highlight their own experiences of living in Texas as an Asian or Asian American.

This show highlights the experiences and memories of Asian American communities through quilting, crocheting, sewing, and more. Fiber and textile arts act as crucial tools for community building, archiving, and maintaining cultural traditions. In this exhibition, folks can see the many forms that fiber arts can take and appreciate how each artist has used fiber and textile to showcase their own family histories and personal stories.

Join us for the Artist Talk and Reception for this exhibit on May 16 from 11am to 1pm. This event is free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be provided. RSVP is required. RSVP for Migration and Integration reception.

Stories of Home: A Photovoice Project | On-View May 2 through June 6, 2026

Collage of pictures and decorative elements from Stories of Home A Photovoice Project

Stories of Home shares the journey of Asian American Resource Center Senior Program participants during the 2025 iteration of the Photovoice Project, developed and led by AARC staff to elevate the voices of our elders, who are part of the fastest growing population in Austin: older adults. Over 12 weeks, the cohort explored questions related to the Age-Friendly Framework domain “Housing” through photos and group discussions, embarking on a journey of recollecting their pasts and reimagining their present. This exhibit displays the photographs shared by seniors during the sessions and invites viewers to also contemplate the spaces of our houses and the meaning of home.

Interested in exhibiting at the AARC or leading a creative workshop?

Community Exhibits Program: Our Community Exhibits Program rotates exhibits on a seasonal basis. Exhibits are selected through our annual open call for artists and curators. If you are interested in exhibiting at the AARC please stay tuned to our social media, website, and newsletter, where we will announce any available opportunities to submit exhibit proposals for our Community Exhibits Program. We do not review any exhibit proposals or art portfolios outside of our open call submission period.

Creative Workshop Program: If you are an artist or creative interested in leading a workshop with us, please contact the AARC's general email at aarc@austintexas.gov.

Permanent and Semi-Permanent Installations

Lotus

Lotus by Sunyong Chung and Philippe Klinefelter, 2013
granite, handmade ceramic tiles

Lotus is a large site specific sculpture created by Art in Public Places commissioned artists Sunyong Chung and Philippe Klinefelter for the Asian American Resource Center (AARC), and is located in the entrance plaza overlooking heritage live oaks.

Chung created an intricate and lively 12’ diameter mosaic of a lotus, made of hand-colored and hand-crafted dimensional tiles, which Klinefelter surrounded with seven 9’ tall hand-carved granite “petals” gracefully reaching toward the sky. Klinefelter also carved the lotus’s seed pod at the center of the mosaic from granite, which doubles as a gently flowing fountain. According to feng shui principles, the placement of the fountain near the AARC entrance creates positive chi, or energy, for the building. The lotus, native to Asia, was chosen as inspiration for the sculpture because of its symbolic attributes of harmony, purification and healing.

Prayer Phone

Prayer Phone | Semi-Permanent Art Installation

Prayer Phone, a handmade altar with a disconnected phone, is an invitation to the public to “call” their deceased loved ones while giving offerings and prayers. This project reflects a common custom of many Asian traditions: commemorating ancestors and venerating the spirit world.

Two essential elements compose this installation. The old fashioned phone is a symbolic artifact that represents humanity’s desire to connect and communicate with others. Its historic form evokes passage of time. By contrast, the spiritual act of lighting incense symbolizes the following: sacredness when the element of air is ignited, purification of the environment’s energy, and blessings in return for offerings. These two elements combine to help connect the earthly to the heavens.

This project is inspired by an episode of This American Life featuring stories about Telephone of the Wind in Otsuchi Town, a small seaside town in northeastern Japan. An iconic English telephone phone booth connected to nowhere was repurposed, and people began “calling” family members lost during the tsunami caused by the 2011 Great Japan Earthquake. Telephone of the Wind became a public space for people to grieve for their lost loved ones. In response, Prayer Phone shares in the deep tradition of respecting spirits and coexisting with entities beyond the physical realm, as well as providing a physical space and an outlet to feel connected with the departed.

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