Queer-sum, a “Chinglish” translation and play on the words “Queer Love,” alludes to the queer attraction that people experience, even though they believe themselves to be straight-identified (sum=heart=love).
QueerSUM心 presents three of Karin Lee’s media works: a 2-channel remix of her classic 16mm film My Sweet Peony Remix, a fantastical drama shot in the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Gardens; Portrait of a Girl, a documentary shot in Beijing; and Small Pleasures, a period drama set in Barkerville, BC.
The works not only investigate sentiments of being “Queer-sum,” but pay tribute to Vancouver’s Chinatown—where Lee spent her childhood—and examine the underlying racism which contributed to the very creation of “Chinatowns” amidst the colonization of Indigenous peoples.
Curated by: Paul Wong and SD Holman
Exhibition dates: May 12 through August 18, 2018
Opening reception: Saturday, May 12th from 2:00-4:00 p.m.
Film event: Thursday, July 19th at 7:00pm
Location: Sum Gallery
QueerSUM心 is presented in partnership with On Main Gallery. Stills from a number of Karin Lee’s films will be featured in TCR Issue 3.35
Karin Lee has been writing, directing, and producing film media works since 1989. Her work has received many awards, most notably a 2001 Gemini: The Canada Award, for her groundbreaking documentary Made in China, and a 2005 BC Leo: Diversity in Cultures Award, for Our Family Pictures. In 2017, Lee was nominated for the Women of Distinction Award in the category of Education, Training and Development for her work as an Adjunct Professor in the UBC Film Production Program, and for decades of work training women in media production, storytelling, and social media platforms. That same year she received the Spotlight Award from Vancouver Women in Film and Video Society.
