Gardens on Our Minds and in Our Communities
Photo credit: Lynn Thibault
“I absolutely feel welcome. Interpreters aren’t seen at many events, [it is] going above and beyond for your community.”
On August 14, Pao Arts Center and the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum partnered to bring the sold-out What is a Garden: Connection, Memory, and Creativity to Chinatown. 75 community members visited Pao Arts Center and found inspiration in the exhibit, Where We Meet: Imagining Gardens and Futures.
Photo credit: Lynn Thibault
The audience gathered to enjoy a shared meal provided by Asian Garden, and learned about Pao Art Center from Visual Arts Manager Maia Erslev, Engagement Manager Yolanda Yang, and exhibit curator Gabrielle Niu, PhD. To provide greater accessibility for the attending public, Interpretation for the evening was provided in Mandarin and Cantonese.
Participants broke out into smaller workshops, each of which was designed to explore the exhibit’s green space-oriented themes.
“I was inspired to do something I wouldn’t do at home, and the generosity of the event”
Photo credit: Lynn Thibault
Erika Rumbley, Director of Horticulture at The Gardener Museum, took inspiration from Yu-wen Wu’s Growing Tree installation, which featured edible plants inspired by her mother’s childhood indoor garden. Participants learned to propagate their cuttings and tips for growing healthy plants at home.
Photo credit: Lynn Thibault
Sarah Hutt, from Berkeley Community Garden, asked participants to tap into their imagination and creativity in creating their own green space collage. Using various materials, textures, and techniques, Sarah guided participants through the basic principles of collage and visual composition to create their dreamy garden interpretations.
Photo credit: Lynn Thibault
Mel Taing, exhibiting artist, led a workshop centered on joy and the color of flowers that adorned the nearby Berkeley Community Garden, photographs of which were featured in the exhibit. Armed with self-created bouquets, participants got pictures of their floral creations with their friends, both those they arrived with and those they took during the event.
“I am struck by the community around Chinatown, the resilience and tenderness through care.”
Finally, exhibit artist Yu-wen Wu guided participants in a contemplative watercolor activity. Each attendee selected an edible plant that evoked a memory or connection for them to draw and paint with watercolors.
Related Programming
Where We Meet: Imagining Gardens and Futures on view July 18 - October 10, 2025
Portraits and Imagining Greener Futures with Mel Taing | July 26 | 2:00 - 4:00 PM
About the Project
Where We Meet: Imagining Greener Futures and its public programming are 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.