CMA Awards of Outstanding Achievement
Audience Outreach
The CMA Outstanding Achievement in Audience Outreach recognizes programming that advances knowledge and understanding by reaching new audiences or enhancing existing ones.
Winner
Markham Museum | Standing In the Doorway: Lived Histories and Experiences of the Chinese Community
Standing In the Doorway: Lived Histories and Experiences of the Chinese Community. Photo — Markham Museum.
Markham Museum | Standing In the Doorway: Lived Histories and Experiences of the Chinese Community
Together in collaboration with community partners, Markham Museum and the York Region District School Board Museum & Archives, created the community driven exhibit program entitled, Standing In the Doorway: Lived Histories and Experiences of the Chinese Community. n commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the Chinese Immigration Act (1923), which coincided locally with the signing of the Williams Treaties, this exhibition tells the story of resistance, resilience, and the many accomplishments of York Region’s residents of Chinese descent. A three-part virtual and touring exhibition program, consisting of a website www2.yrdsb.ca/standing-doorway, travelling community exhibition and an interschool pop-up exhibit, each component is supported by exceptional quality educational material for the public and classroom.
This project began as the idea of one local resident, Nancy Siew, our Project Patron. Working in a close-knit partnership, the curators of our two institutions engaged with over 500 participants, including community leaders, project advisors, and contributors resulting in the sharing of personal stories, experiences and loans of over 300 records and artifacts for the exhibition. This project was a collaboration of community partners who trusted our institutions to present this history in an educational and appropriate manner. With education as the foundation of the project, addressing anti-Asian racism in the community was a central focus, resulting in an exhibition that celebrates and honours the Chinese residents of York Region and their stories of resilience and perseverance.
“As project partners, we are extremely honoured by the CMA for this prestigious award. This community-driven exhibition could not have been possible without the active participation of the Chinese community in York Region, and we sincerely thank the many advisors, participants, educators, students and families that engaged in its creation.”
— Janet Reid (Curator), Markham Museum and Rebekah Mitchell (Curator), York Region District School Board Museum & Archives
Standing In the Doorway: Lived Histories and Experiences of the Chinese Community. Photo — Markham Museum.
Publicity
