'We Are Bruce Lee' exhibit reopens SF Chinatown's museum

INSTAGRAM

Shannon lee attended the Chinatown museum's exhibit honoring her father, the late Bruce Lee.

San Francisco's Chinatown has a new tourist attraction that honors one of the city's own heroes. The exhibit honoring the late martial artist and actor Bruce Lee opened over the weekend at the Chinatown Historical Society Association's Museum.

The unveiling Saturday of the new exhibit preceded the re-opening of the CHSA museum on Sunday.

The groundbreaking exhibition, "We Are Bruce Lee: Under the Sky, One Family" is a multimedia collaboration between the Bruce Lee Foundation, top collectors of Bruce Lee memorabilia, and a team of artistic innovators will showcase state-of-the-art engagement to magnify the vision and values of a Chinese American icon who transcended race, geography, and culture.

Lee was born at Chinese Hospital in San Francisco’s Chinatown. He remains an international icon and Chinatown hero years after his untimely death in 1973 at the age of 32.

This exhibit offers unique perspectives of Bruce beyond martial arts and acting—as a visionary, athlete, thinker, and unifier who fought discrimination with uncanny strength, unwavering resilience, and profound engagement with a multicultural society. Visitors of all ages will learn about his evolution from a kid from Hong Kong to a global pioneering entrepreneur and his immortal influence on fans and followers across generations, backgrounds, and all walks of life.

The generous contributions of the Bruce Lee Foundation, and collectors Jeff Chinn, Robert Gomez, Ken Hao, and Perry Lee present a trove of rarely seen artifacts, historic photos, handwritten letters, memorabilia, video, film, artwork, graphical displays, and multimedia technology. Collectively, this exhibit reveals Bruce’s personal philosophies on life and society—which offer relevant lessons in present day, a time currently fraught with xenophobia, racism, and social injustice.

Key selections from the artifacts on exhibit include:

• 35mm celluloid prints from each of Bruce’s movies installed in glowing light boxes;
• A custom-designed installation featuring original artifacts depicting Bruce as Kato from the TV show The Green Hornet including an original October 1966 TV Guide, the first feature of an Asian American on a nationally distributed magazine cover;
• Bruce’s personal weight bench and dumbbell set;
• Rare photos of Bruce in costume on the sets of his many films; and
• An original copy of The Tao of Jeet Kune Do, Bruce’s publication on his martial arts philosophy

The exhibit's theme of unity breaks ground in San Francisco with a mission to bridge communities from two historic neighborhoods—Chinatown and Fillmore/Western Addition in an effort to tell the story of cross-community respect and collaboration. We Are Bruce Lee features an art gallery curated by African American Art & Culture Complex Co-executive Directors Melonie and Melorra Green showcasing Bruce’s influence on the Black community from the perspective of some of the Bay Area’s premier Black artists and other creatives of color.

In addition, CHSA is excited to debut the complementary Bruce Lee mural “Be the Bridge” in the museum’s Yick Gallery, produced by Bay Area art collectives "Twin Walls Mural Company and Macro Waves." 

Artists Elaine Chu and Marina Perez-Wong of theTwin Walls Mural Co. created “Be the Bridge,” a 24-by-10-foot mural that will be on display in CHSA’s Yick Gallery.

This expansive art piece takes inspiration from Bruce’s unifying of communities and offers a one-of-a-kind immersive experience. It utilizes artwork and animated projections by creatives from different cultural communities, including a customized soundscape and playlist by local musicians Mike Dinkins and De’Ahna Turner.

The journey to present this historic exhibition was born as a result of the challenges that Chinese Americans, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI), and San Francisco Chinatown have faced over the past two years. Amid this unrelentingly difficult time for AAPIs, the hardships have become an opportunity to bring light to our community. 

Through "We Are Bruce Lee," CHSA aims to strengthen and revitalize the Chinatown neighborhood in which Bruce was born; to amplify the Chinese American and AAPI communities; and to combat racism and hate by bringing diverse audiences together in solidarity.

The Chinese Historical Society of America in San Francisco is the oldest organization in the country dedicated to the presentation of Chinese American history.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Don't miss out on additional commentary, news and views from an AAPI perspective. Follow @DioknoEd on Twitter.