This summer, Nick Lee, a 2021 B.F.A. painting alumni of the School of Art, was part of a revitalization project to transform Cleveland鈥檚 AsiaTown, formerly known as Chinatown.
The project was led by Chinese American artist Jordan Wong, recipient of the Cleveland Transformative Arts Fund, a $3 million initiative supporting public art projects led by artists in partnership with institutions based in the City of Cleveland. Wong worked in partnership with the Sculpture Center Museum in Cleveland, with the aim of transforming a parking lot space by adding five engaging design elements: a decorative light box, a signature archway, ping pong tables, playful seating arrangements and a trio of artistic planters. Nick Lee was one of two other Asian American artists, Lydia Guan and Thao Nguyen, who were selected for the task of designing the planters.
鈥淚 love the culture in AsiaTown and the history, and I think it's important that we get back to our community within Cleveland,鈥 Lee said, in an interview with Ideastream Public Media. 鈥淲e really wanted to revamp the space and to make it more welcoming and friendly to our local community.鈥
During the time that Nick Lee worked on this project, he was also attending the School of Art鈥檚 Kent Blossom Art Intensives, which provided him with the studio space to pursue his design ideas for the planters. Kent Blossom Art Intensives are a series of two-week studio art intensives conducted each summer since 1968 at 海角原创, created with the goal of providing a space and environment for artists to thrive. Nick Lee made full use of the space, allowing him to develop his designs.
His designs for the planters were featured in Applause, a weekly show hosted by PBS covering Northeast Ohio鈥檚 vibrant arts and culture scene.
鈥淚'm really interested in better representing the Japanese American community, just because we're not being fully represented in our galleries and institutions,鈥 said Lee in an interview with Ideastream Public Media. 鈥淎rt can change a lot and make people more excited about visiting AsiaTown.鈥
The new AsiaTown parking lot was formally unveiled in September as part of AsiaTown鈥檚 Mid-Autumn Festival, where Nick Lee and other talented Asian American artist鈥檚 works were displayed.