Art has always been a progenitor to shifts in society. After all,
we only know what’s possible through our own eyes; we must
be shown what else is possible, different, and sometimes better
through another’s lens.
It was a photograph of Earth taken by wistful Apollo 17 astronauts
that helped catalyze a slate of environmental reforms. A Black
President of the world and the United States governed on film and
TV, respectively, long before one was elected into the actual Oval
Office. What we see alters and expands what we believe and who
we can become—and, eventually, how we treat each other.
We also know the shadows that emerge when a lens is not our
own—particularly when someone else speaks for us. While the
AAPI and Asian diaspora communities have been long mis- and
under-represented across creative mediums, much has changed in
the past three years. We’ve been profoundly encouraged by recent
momentum across all creative mediums to employ Asian and
Pacific Islander artists and decision makers, invest in their work,
and promote them on the world’s greatest and most hallowed stages.
But progress is often slower than those who need it would like.
That’s why the Gold Art Prize matters. The Gold Art Prize retakes
ownership over our own voices by investing in the next generation
of contemporary artists in partnership with the most reputable
AAPI leaders of the art world. This stands as a creative imperative—
even as new technologies have evolved the creative process and
consumption habits, few creative endeavors persist as reliably
and poignantly through time as art has and does. It also stands as
a commercial imperative as the AAPI community represents
the fastest-growing population in the United States—and the
world’s existing majority.
We are only here now because we are together. We want to thank
all of our incredible partners in the contemporary art world—from
curators to collectors to artists—for empowering all of us with their
long-standing creativity and commitment to new artistic voices.
Bing Chen is an impact entrepreneur as President of Gold House, General Partner of
Aum Group, and a principal architect of YouTube’s creator economy.