Sutter County Museum premiers new Chinese exhibit

Dec. 14—The new "Chinese Pioneers: Power and Politics in Exclusion Era Photographs" exhibit made its first stop at the Sutter County Museum in Yuba CIty on Monday, after being curated by Erin Garcia of the California Historical Society located in San Francisco. This exhibit tours through Exhibit Envoy, and the first six bookings were funded through The Henry Mayo Newhall Foundation.

The exhibit consists of four triangular display pillars filled with photos and text that stand in the main hall of the museum. Each face is labeled with a number at the bottom to designate the intended order of reading.

The panels primarily focus on the history and images of Chinese immigrants in California during the Gold Rush era and in the decades before and after the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act. Throughout this period, photographs and sketches gradually morphed into anti-Chinese or sinophobic propaganda. As these fears began to subside, the images began to reflect the western world's fascination with "orientalism" in what white-Americans deemed as "exotic." The juxtaposition of portrait photography employed in both identity documents intended for surveillance and the traditional "sitter" studios shows how the same tool can be used to create vastly different stories. It also demonstrates how the Chinese people viewed themselves against the common and often exploitative representations in the media and government.

Molly Bloom, director and curator for the Sutter County Museum, was excited to show off two pieces in the museum's own collection that give patrons a local tie to this historic period. One was a letter sent from the Chinatown in Oroville to "On Wo" at 306 First St. in Marysville. The contents seem to suggest a cordial correspondence in regards to receiving money. The other was a rice paper ledger from 1905 used to log people who donated to the Bok Kai Festival in Marysville's Chinatown.

"These are a couple items that we haven't had on display before," said Bloom. "We had a team that was researching the contents of this letter and of this ledger book, but unfortunately we don't have records of who donated these or when. It was also hard to find someone to translate the ledger because, as it mentions, it's written in Classical Chinese which isn't connected to spoken forms now according to our translators."

Bloom also mentioned how sinophobia established a precedent during the mid-1800s which paved the way for the future oppression of other Asian cultures as seen in the Japanese internment camps of the 1940s. For those that got to experience the "Disrupted Life: Replica Barrack from the Tule Lake Internment Camp" exhibit on display at the museum this past spring, "Chinese Pioneers" serves as a substantial precursor that foreshadows the tumultuous road to acceptance and citizenship for Asian-Americans in the United States.

The "Chinese Pioneer" exhibit will be on display at the museum during regular business hours now until Feb. 5, 2023. A free opening reception will take place from 6-8 p.m. on Friday to celebrate the exhibit with light refreshments and hors d'oeuvres.

Organizers are also coordinating with Friends of the Marysville Bok Kai Temple and Historic Chinatown to host a Speaker Series at the museum from 5:30-7 p.m. on Jan. 19, 2023. Finally, a kids movie night will feature Pixar's "Turning Red" at the museum from 5:30-7:30 p.m. on Feb. 3, 2023. This film features animation inspired by the Marysville Bok Kai Temple, and the event was sponsored by Early Risers Kiwanis Club of Yuba City. This event, like the others, is free to attend, however pre-registration is required and will be open one month before the scheduled movie night.

The Sutter County Museum is located at 1333 Butte House Rd. in Yuba City. Regular open hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Friday, and weekends from 12-4 p.m. Admission is free. For more information, call the museum at 530-822-7141, or visit suttercountymuseum.org.