April is APIDA Heritage and LGBTQIA+ Pride Month
April celebrates LGBTQIA+ Pride Month and Asian Pacific Islander and Desi American (APIDA) Heritage Month, where we celebrate the legacy, histories, and cultural pride for our APIDA and LGBTQIA+ communities. Typically, Pride Month lands in June and APIDA Heritage Month takes place in May, but given the academic calendar on many college campuses, we celebrate LGBTQIA+ Pride and APIDA Heritage during April, giving ample time for recognition and visibility. While both of these communities may be distinct from one another, the reality is that identity is intersectional, and we want to honor that intersectionality through our various programs this month.
List of Events
Featured Artist Speaker: Carrie Chen, Artist and Educator
Wednesday, April 19, 11:15am-12:15pm, Ahmanson 6th Floor (610/611) | RSVP Here
Carrie Chen is an artist and educator based in Los Angeles. Working with computer-generated animation, simulation technologies and media installation, she explores how digital figuration can be a poetic and multidimensional means to process and express ideas about cultural hybridity, representation, time and memory.
Spending time between the US and China, Chen's practice draws on non-Western ontologies and narratives while also deconstructing and reconfiguring her Chinese-American identity, experience and ancestry. With a transdisciplinary approach, Chen is interested in what she calls the “productive uncanny” and engages with the complexities of social behavior, digital bodies, culture and technology.
She currently teaches Visual Communication as an Adjunct Assistant Professor at USC Media Arts + Practice and 3D Arts at Parsons School of Design. She has exhibited internationally and is Creative Director at LA-based Spectra Studio, a multidisciplinary design collective working with interactive installation, projection, robotics and light. She holds an MFA of Design Media Arts from UCLA, and a Bachelor of Science double majoring in Applied Psychology and Art History from NYU.
Pride Prom and Drag Show
Friday, March 31, 8:00pm-11:00pm | The Forum
You are invited to join us for a night of dancing and drag as we celebrate the LGBTQIA+ community and Otis. The night will include music, activities, a pride-themed runway contest, free food, and more! All students are welcome and encouraged to attend regardless of how they identify, as we hope this will create a safe space for self-expression. Come in your best drag, best pride, or best dressed! We hope to see you there!
Co-Sponsored by: Campus Activities Board and Otis Pride Club
Community Museum Visit: Gajin Fujita (‘97, BFA Fine Arts), True Colors
Thursday, April 6, 2:30pm-3:30pm | LA Louver | RSVP
Join us in another community museum visit to experience Gajin Fujita’s newest solo show, True Colors L.A. Louver is pleased to present a new, transformational body of work by Gajin Fujita. Created between 2020 and 2023, the paintings and drawings in True Colors demonstrate radical technical and thematic developments in Fujita’s oeuvre as the artist explores experimenting with shadow and line, the realm of social critique, and the incorporation of portraiture into his practice. Gajin Fujita will join our group and take us through his work!
RSVP here, and please note, transportation will not be provided. LA Louver will validate anyone parking in the structure across from LA Louver or people can use a rideshare app to attend.
Designing for Diversity: The Evolution of Barbie with Mattel
Wednesday, April 26, 11:15am-12:15pm | Ahmanson 706 (Toy Design Gallery) RSVP here
This panel of designers and Otis alum will focus on the approach to design for diversity and explore the evolution of Barbie with the call for more representation in the Barbie brand. Panelists will talk about the creative practice and inspiration, approaches, and how they sustain inclusive design in their world of work. RSVP for this event. Lunch will be provided!
Mattel, Inc. Panelists Include:
- Carlyle Nuera (‘10, Product Design) Lead Designer, Barbie Signature
- Joyce Chen (‘14, Fashion Design), Senior Product Designer, Barbie
- Javi Meabe (‘12, Toy Design), Senior Product Designer, Barbie
Co-Sponsored by: Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and Toy Design
2nd Annual Otis K-Pop Festival
Saturday, April 29, 12:30pm-5:30pm| The Commons
Join us at Otis College of Art and Design to enjoy the second-ever Otis K-Pop Festival, hosted once again by the college's very own K-Pop Club! Browse the multiple arts and crafts vendors at our Artist Alley, indulge in a bite from invited food vendors, and party with us for the dance performance hosted at the end of the night! Teams from all across Southern California including Otis College's very own team FLOWRIS will be giving a performance you won't want to miss. All ticket funds raised will be donated directly to the AAPI organization, Hate is a Virus, as a part of the club's mission towards raising awareness about AAPI issues and contributing financially to our community. Tickets are currently on sale for PRE-RSVP for $7 through this link (Otis students get in for free with show of school ID): https://forms.gle/bJVy9DZ2mVLQCwmN6
Co-sponsored by: K-Pop Club, Student Engagement and Leadership, and Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
