The Flavor Continues performing at Experience Chinatown, 2024. Photo credit: Olivia Moon Photography
Murals | Performances
Exhibits | Activities | FAQ
Join us this fall, see, hear, create, and connect for the 8th annual Experience Chinatown Arts Festival. Together, celebrate the rich cultural fabric of Boston Chinatown through free creative activities. This year’s theme, Imagine a Greener Future for Chinatown, is the throughline for murals and activities as we amplify the need for public green spaces in our neighborhood.
On Saturday, September 27, 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM, Chinatown comes to life with live performances and activities at Chin Park on the Greenway, and exhibits across the neighborhood, Where We Meet: Imagining Gardens and Futures at Pao Arts Center, 99 Albany Street.
Be sure to also explore Chinatown through the creative lens of muralists, who will display their works on local business storefronts from August 30 to October 17.
Murals
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Pao Arts Center Back Deck
99 Albany Street, Boston, MA 02111View the mural
Artist statement: Jasmine is a beloved flower in Chinese culture, symbolizing purity and elegance. In imagining a greener future for Chinatown, we may wish for lush greenery, but that comes hand in hand with our little brethren: insects.
Scattered among the leaves are colorful bugs living in their own tiny world. Some are seen as lucky, like the ladybug, or beautiful like the butterfly - but also included are the hardworking ant, and the humble spider. Bugs are the foundation of the ecosystem. We may overlook them or treat them as pests, but there are no flowers, no songbirds, no greener future without our little guys. We can't just pick and choose the ones that we like - all creatures have their place in keeping the environment alive.
Step into a different perspective. The next time you see a bug, I encourage you to not step on it thoughtlessly - take a moment to observe its movements, think about its journey, and appreciate how much this little creature does for our world. -
Q Restaurant
660 Washington St, Boston, MA 02111
View the mural
Artist statement: Boston’s Chinatown formed in the 1870s as a hub of survival and opportunity. For over 150 years, it has withstood development, pollution, Chinese Exclusion, violence, immigration raids, displacement, and ongoing gentrification. While it’s one of Boston’s most densely-populated residential districts, Chinatown’s footprint — and green spaces — continue to shrink.
To imagine a greener future for Chinatown means to dream big; to manifest, free from oppression and against all odds, a community so fantastically lush and abundant that wildlife returns. That we experience a sighting of the mythological Fenghuang, a symbol of interconnectedness, peace, prosperity, and new beginnings. Depicted with it are the "Four Gentlemen”: the chrysanthemum, plum blossom, orchid, and bamboo, representing the four seasons; as well as a butterfly, crane, and panda. This imagery is inspired by traditional Chinese bird-and-flower paintings that evoke the resilience and appreciation of natural beauty. -
Happy Lamb Hot Pot
693 Washington St, Boston, MA 02116
View the mural
Artist statement: We are a mother-daughter artist duo based in Massachusetts. Xiang Li is a master Chinese painter who spent 40 years working in the Forbidden City in Beijing. Fei Wu, her daughter, is a designer and storyteller who helps bring Xiang’s artwork to public spaces across the United States.
This mural celebrates Chinatown’s future through joy, community, and care for the environment. Our playful panda characters represent harmony between humans, animals, and nature. Each panda brings a story—honoring family, health, play, music, and love for the Earth.
We imagined a Chinatown where green spaces bloom alongside small businesses, where art and culture feed the soul, and where children can thrive. Our pandas play traditional drums, hold Olympic medals, and care for the next generation—while bright flowers and birds sing of renewal and hope.
Thank you for visiting! May this mural spark smiles, stories, and shared dreams for a greener future. -
Shōjō
9A Tyler St, Boston, MA 02111
View the mural
Artist statement: Throughout Asia, planters are common ways to add greenery in areas that have limited space. They contain the actions of a neighborhood that takes root even through hardship, along with the wishes of its community to flourish for generations.These decorated pots not only highlight Asian cultural traditions but also reflect the creativity and resourcefulness of the Asian community itself. Each planter in this mural is inspired by real community spaces in Boston’s Chinatown — connecting today’s neighborhood to its history and heritage.
Can you guess which spaces they represent?
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Dumpling Cafe
695 Washington St, Boston, MA 02111
View the mural
Artist statement: Chinatown is woven from threads of community, memory, culture, food, and gathering together, forming an unbreakable fabric of connection. This tapestry is shaped by the daily rhythms found in every Chinatown: people gathering before the gate plaza, playing games, chatting, sipping tea.
Drawing from my Taiwanese roots and family, the table is set with the Formosan black bear, tiger, and pig — each a zodiac sign from my family — joined by rabbits, the familiar inhabitants of Cambridge, my Boston home, and second home.
Surrounding them, lush greenery frames the scene, with Chinese vegetation threading across the composition. These living threads bridge the mythical creatures perched atop the Boston Chinatown Gate, watching over and blessing the community that thrives beneath their gaze. Threading together the culture, heritage, the inspiration, and the hope for a greener Chinatown. -
Waku Waku Ramen
2 Tyler St, Boston, MA 02111
View the mural
Artist statement: Tenacity. Power. Protection. Strength. When prompted to "Imagine a greener future for Chinatown," I immediately gravitated towards the image of a tiger, an animal imbued with powerful qualities in Asian culture, to represent the community.This mural is both a homage to Chinatown's history and a wish for the future. The trees and waves, a homage. Built atop what was once a beach, then a highway, our trees are not meant grow tall, yet the people, the hardy immigrants who settled and called this district their home, sprung their roots, creating a community that is both vibrant and alive. The chrysanthemums and grass bursting through the pavement, a wish. A wish not just for survival, but longevity and the persistence of life despite increasingly suffocating circumstances.
I hope that this mural can inspire its viewers to learn more about Chinatown's story and feel just a fraction of the community's determination and strength.
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APM Coffee
99 Kneeland St, Boston, MA 02111
View the mural
Artist statement: The construction of highways through Chinatown displaced hundreds of families, and today the neighborhood continues to face challenges of gentrification, limited green space, and environmental burdens. Research shows that Chinatown has the highest levels of fine particulate matter of any neighborhood in Massachusetts—and some of the worst traffic-related air pollution in the entire Northeast.
Birds reflect the environmental health of a neighborhood. Like humans, birds seek out comfort in the shade of trees and absorb the good and bad around them into their bodies. Research has also found that bird populations tend to flourish more in well-resourced neighborhoods, compared to those historically impacted by housing injustice.
In Chinatown, there are not enough birds. In my mural, a robin raises its young in a place lush with hawthorn fruit and strawberries. I dream that Chinatown can be a place where future generations grow up in coexistence with native birds, among healthy air, sufficient green spaces, and affordable housing for all. -
Designed by Ellis Yung, Angy Morel, Mai Pham
View the mural
Team: Aaron Li, Angy Morel, DonCarlo Lochard, Ellis Yung, Jannat El Jamia, Mai Pham, Megan Kwan, Noah Shin, Noelle Lee, Samara Daughtry
BCNC
38 Ash Street, Boston, MA 02111This year’s Youth Mural Arts program brings together nine hard-working high school youths to learn about Chinatown history, public art, and arts activism. This summer, the group worked collaboratively towards BCNC’s new mural, Our Nature Here and Now, which revolves around the Experience Chinatown theme, Imagine a Greener Future for Chinatown.
The mural tells the story of a resident, seen riding from the gates of Chinatown, winding through the various facets of what makes a green community, and snacking on watermelon while resting under a shady tree. Illustrated by a winding green path, the youth wanted to demonstrate that sustainability and eco-practices are ever-evolving, interconnected, and shaped by our environment, which includes respecting biodiversity and cultivating green spaces and structures. Most importantly, community and collective care lie at the heart of their work; the title directly relates to today’s climate crisis and urgency. They hope to inspire onlookers and passersby to think constructively about what it means to inch closer to a greener future and work towards it.
Muralists
Kelly Jin is a Boston-based illustrator and the creative force behind Koobiie Mart, her independent art business. A lifelong artist, she’s been drawing since she could hold a pencil. As an American-born Chinese and child of immigrants, Kelly weaves her cultural background into her work, creating playful, vibrant pieces that celebrate the beauty of everyday life. Swooning over bright colors and joyful moments, her art often features simple but beloved subjects like food, animals, and scenes from nature, designed to spark warmth and delight.
Photo courtesy of the artist.
Amanda 陳 Beard Garcia is a Chinese American muralist, illustrator, and brand designer based in Dracut, MA. Through portraiture and digital design, Amanda’s studio practice reclaims and repaints her Chinese American identity by investigating the invisible Exclusion-era history and heritage of her ancestors. She is co-founder and principal of Likemind Design, a creative studio with a mission to elevate the brands of independently-owned businesses “just like us,” as well as founder of Lucky Knot Arts, a collaborative community centering AANHPIs through pop-up arts programming on the North Shore of Massachusetts.
Photo credit: Mel Taing
Xiang Li is an internationally acclaimed artist who specializes in the reproduction and restoration of ancient Chinese paintings at the Forbidden City of Beijing, China, where she worked as a Master Artist for 37 years. Li’s most recent collection, Chinese Empresses, features over 200 empresses painted with gemstone watercolors on silk and has been showcased at the Harvard Museums, Museum of Fine Arts Boston, Worcester Art Museum, JMAC, Cambridge Public Library, Harvard Graduate School of Education, New England Botanic Garden at Tower Hill, among others.
Photo courtesy of the artist.
I am a Boston based Taiwanese artist, who has always been influenced by the idea that stories contain power. Art can be both beautiful and powerful. Through the narrative of my own illustrations, I got to express my unique perspective and experience with playful culture symbolism in color, textures, and layers.
Photo credit: Yiwen Wang & Lichun Wang
Trinity Kao is a Taiwanese-born architect and visual artist whose work explores the intersection of urbanism, storytelling, and spatial experience. Trained in classical art and architecture, she holds a Master of Architecture in Urban Design from Harvard Graduate School of Design and is a licensed architect in Taiwan. Her photography has received multiple awards, and her illustrations have been published across academic and cultural platforms.
Her creative practice spans illustration, photography, and site-specific installations. Her work is grounded in a belief that art and architecture share a common purpose: to reveal, question, and reimagine the environments we live in.
Photo courtesy of the artist.
Cute, bubbly, and bright? Or epic, moody, and chock-full of symmetry and detail? The question of which style to stick to never fails to fling the artist, Tao, into a brief identity crisis, but one thread of their work remains true: it demands to be seen. Bursting with energy, the artist (who once likened the way they choose color to a moth being drawn to a flame) blends bright colors and scratchy textures with imagery inspired by Asian patterns and paintings. Sometimes they want to obsess over detail. Sometimes they want to draw the prettiest person their mind can conceive and nearly quit in a perfectionist-induced flurry of rage and frustration. Other times, they just really, really want to draw something round, fun, and cute. Whatever the mood or theme may be, they let their heart land where it lands, confident that their love for creating will surely follow.
Photo courtesy of the artist.
KEOI Art (Em Ding) is a queer Cantonese American artist creating illustrations inspired by Asian American cultures, food, and cute dogs. Community is one of their core values. Their work has been featured as a mural at the Quincy-based nonprofit Panethnic Pourovers, in the Mei Mei Dumpling Disloyalty 2025 campaign, and in the Canto Cutie zine. Based in Greater Boston, they can be found around the city selling their illustrations at local markets and promoting Boston Cantonese Club.
Photo credit: Bella Wang Photography
The Experience Chinatown Youth Mural Arts program brings together nine hard-working high school youths to learn about Chinatown history, public art, and arts activism as they collectively work towards BCNC’s new mural, per this year’s Experience Chinatown theme—Imagining a Greener Future for Chinatown. Over two weeks, they collaborated on the design, considered the joy in working together, and painted a beautiful mural at BCNC. This summer, we were joined by Jannet, Samara, Noah, Noelle, Angy, Ellis, Aaron, and Doncarlo.
Photo credit: staff
Performances
Read more about this year’s performers here
11:00 AM - 胡清白鹤派 Woo Ching White Crane
11:15 AM - Kapatid Kud
12:00 PM - CHUANG Stage's Stories on our Streets; Busing the Buffer Zone by Christina R. Chan
12:45 PM - Karen Young and KASA Taiko
1:30 PM - Coraldefense
2:00 PM - Kosmic
2:15 PM - Juk Sing 竹升
The Woo Ching White Crane School opened in Boston Chinatown in the late 1990's.The school promotes the traditional system of Southern Chinese Lion Dance & Kung Fu, originating in Toisan in Guangdong Province, China. Our lion dance and performances bring luck, happiness and prosperity to all students and audiences alike. The mission of our school is to carry on the arts and strong spirit to future generations.
Photo credit: 胡清白鹤派 Woo Ching White Crane
Kapatid Kud [kah-pah-TID kooD] is a global collective of music artists who create songs together as a way to tell stories that reflect the real conversations and actions around them and that connect and build up their communities. Their name is a combination of the Tagalog word "kapatid", which means "sibling", and "kud", which in Hindi means "play" and in Malayalam "nest" (or a family space). Grounded in their shared sense of kinship, they create with the energy of joy and play as intentional resistance and approach songwriting and performance as song medicine for themselves and their communities.
Photo courtesy of the artist.
CHUANG Stage's Stories on our Streets
CHUANG STAGE is Boston's Asian American theatre company, presenting Stories on Our Streets - a song cycle conceived by CHUANG Stage, commissioned by Company One, and building on the oral history collection started by the Company One & Pao Arts Center's collaboration in 2021. Stories on Our Streets uplifts Boston’s Chinatown’s history, vibrancy, and perseverance in the face of gentrification and racial violence. From the rhythms of restaurant kitchens, to the steps of a child growing up on the brick streets, this musical-in-progress offers moving portraits of home, memory, and belonging—rooted in Boston’s Chinatown and resonant far beyond it.
Photo courtesy of the artist.
Busing the Buffer Zone by Christina R. Chan
Christina R Chan is a Chinese American theater creative amplifying Asian American stories of joy, community, and social change. She was born in Hong Kong and grew up near Chinatown - a place of inspiration for her plays.
The staged reading is an excerpt from Christina’s play, “Busing the Buffer Zone”. This play is about a boycott organized by non-English-speaking Chinese garment workers during Boston's forced busing crisis. This month, September 2025, is exactly 50 years since the boycott. Development of “Busing the Buffer Zone” is funded by The Boston Foundation's LAB grant and Mass Humanities EMS grant with CHUANG Stage.
Credit: Ron Rinaldi
KASA Taiko is an Asian American–centered project led by cultural organizer and teaching artist Karen Young. KASA stands for Karen’s Awesome Students and Apprentices—and also means “hat” or “umbrella” in Japanese. Karen is joined with Mica Rose, Mel Taing, Maria Gerdyman, Emma Ishida, Elizabeth Endo, and Ava Grace. This project, Taiko at the (Gay)te amplifies LGBTQ+ Asian voices in Boston, challenging stereotypes, reclaiming narratives, and fostering pride, connection, and visibility. Supported in part by the Mayor’s Office of LGBTQIA2S+ Advancement.
Photo credit: City of Boston
Coraldefense is Emily Mo, a Chinese-American solo musician and producer who creates experimental electronic pop. Originally a bedroom songwriter with a passion for odd sound design, Emily eventually shifted heavily towards electronic production in order to sculpt more vivid, wondrous sonic textures.
Credit: Carlos Cheung
Kosmic is a K-Pop dance team based in the Boston area. They aim to create a fun and safe environment for their dancers to shoot for the stars. Kosmic seeks to show appreciation for a variety of Asian cultures through dance, believing that their passion for dance unites us all.
Photo courtesy of the artist.
Juk Sing is a dream pop Cantopop cover band reimagining iconic hits from Hong Kong’s golden era. With hazy guitars and lush reverb, they transform classics from the ’70s to ’90s into nostalgic, ethereal soundscapes. Honoring legends like Anita Mui, Leslie Cheung, and beyond, Juk Sing breathes new life into timeless melodies—inviting listeners to drift through memory and melody, one dreamy rendition at a time.
Photo courtesy of the artist.
Exhibits
Where We Meet: Imagining Gardens and Futures at Pao Arts Center, 99 Albany Street. Presented in collaboration with the Isabella Stewart Stewart Gardner Museum and supported by the New England Foundation for the Arts' Public Art for Spatial Justice program, with funding from the Barr Foundation and the Fund for the Arts at NEFA.
PlanTable located at Chin Park on the Greenway by Ecosistema Urbano is part of the Un-monument initiative presented by Pao Arts Center and curated by Lani Asunción. Created in partnership with The Greenway Conservancy and the City of Boston Mayor’s Office of Arts and Culture, funded by the Mellon Foundation.
abundance among us: dragon and friends located at Tufts Community Common (186 Harrison Ave Boston) by Sheila Novak, Cass Li, and Wen-hao Tien with project support from Maria Fong. abundance among us: dragon and friends is part of the Un-monument initiative presented by Pao Arts Center, curated by Lani Asunción, in collaboration with the City of Boston Mayor’s Office of Arts and Culture. It is brought to you by a grant from the Mellon Foundation.
Activities
All activities are located at Chin Park on the Greenway unless otherwise specified.
Flower Crowns with BCNC
Create your own floral crowns to celebrate the end of summer.
BCNC’s mission is to ensure that the children, youth, and families we serve have the resources and supports they need to achieve greater economic success and social well-being.
Photo credit: The Chinatown Project
Fun with Bunker Hill Community College
Meet and learn more about Bunker Hill Community College and enjoy free activities.
BHCC is an open access, multi-campus, urban institution and the largest community college in Massachusetts, enrolling more than 16,000 students annually.
Photo credit: Olivia Moon Photography
SaturPlay
Family fun with our friends from ACDC’s A-VOYCE, a program that engages young people in activating underutilized public spaces with family-oriented activities and cultural programming.
Asian Community Development Corporation (ACDC) invests in Asian American and low-income communities by creating and preserving affordable and vibrant neighborhoods in Chinatown and Greater Boston.
Photo credit: The Chinatown Project
Greener Fortunes with Caroline Hu
Come create a custom paper fortune teller and share how you would enjoy greater tree cover in Chinatown. Your paper fortune teller will also introduce you to Chinatown's current trees and how you can help care for them.
Caroline Hu (she/her) is an artist and educator with a PhD in biology and a love for visual storytelling. Her work is featured in Pao Arts Center’s Between the Bricks: A Field Guide to Imagined Gardens.
Photo credit: Matt Ferrara
Pollinator Painting Party!
Design and paint your own little garden bug on a rock. Take your new bug friend with you, or give it a new home in one of Chinatown's gardens.
Shaina Lu 呂明穎 (she/her) is a queer Taiwanese-American artist interested in the intersection of art, education, and activism. She creates community art for social change through dialogue and conversation with local youth, residents, and grassroots organizers. Her work is featured in Pao Arts Center’s Between the Bricks: A Field Guide to Imagined Gardens.
Photo courtesy of the artist
Flying Seeds with Kelly Tan
Plants spread their seeds so that they can take root and thrive—similar to people, ideas, and movements! Craft your own flying paper seed pod that will glide and twirl in the wind, and attach your own “seeds” of dreams for a greener and more livable future.
Kelly Tan (she/they) is queer Chinese-American artist and educator based in Boston. Their practice centers art as collective meaning-making towards a more colorful and liberated vision of reality.
Photo credit: Elizabeth Endo
PlanTable: Seeds for the Future
Design your own terracotta pot with dreams of your neighborhood, plant some seeds, and watch them grow at home!
To learn more about PlanTable.
Photo credit: Wenbin Huang
FAQ
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The day of performances and activities is a day full of creativity celebrating AAPI artists and community.
From 11:00 AM - 3:00 PM, come by Chin Park on the Greenway to see live performances on our main stage, take part in an activity, and see our exhibits at the park and at Pao Arts Center. -
Experience Chinatown is a free arts festival with funding provided by individuals and companies. Consider making a donation of any amount on our donation page and learn more about sponsorship here.
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Experience Chinatown is for all ages to enjoy. Youth, families, and seniors are all encouraged to enjoy the event.
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While there are no official vendors at Experience Chinatown, we encourage you to explore the many food options located in Chinatown.
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Murals are located across Boston’s Chinatown. Performances and activities are located at Chin Park on the Greenway, and exhibit(s) are at Pao Arts Center. The nearest MBTA stops are: Chinatown and Tufts Medical Center on the Orange Line, and South Station on the Red Line. Various bus routes are located nearby including the SL4, 501, 504, and 505.
Street parking is limited. Local garages include: 40 Beach Street, and 66 Hudson Street. -
Pao Arts Center is ADA compliant, learn more about our space here. Murals are all viewable on Chinatown business fronts, and performances and activities are located at Chin Park near Chinatown Gate. Outdoor public spaces are maintained by the City of Boston or the Rose Kennedy Greenway.
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Pao Arts Center, 99 Albany Street, Boston, MA 02111 is open during the performance and activity day. It is also open during our regular gallery hours where you may use our facilities.
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Bags are allowed at the festival given that this event takes place in public spaces. They are also allowed in our gallery at Pao Arts Center. Photography is also allowed in all instances of the festival. Please note that by attending, your likeness may be captured by one of our hired photographers or other staff for promotional purposes.
Sponsorship
Show your support for community arts and become a sponsor of Experience Chinatown. Learn more about supporting Experience Chinatown with a sponsorship.
