Cheap! Diligent! Faithful!
by Marlene Yuen
September 25 - December 12, 2020

We can only truly imagine what the future will look like if we pause to consider our pasts. As our urban, cultural, technological and political landscapes rapidly shift, Vancouver-based printmaker Marlene Yuen delves into Chinese Canadian labour histories through stories both known and forgotten. The histories of immigrant labour in Canada are utterly intertwined with Canada’s colonial legacy and our contemporary concerns; Yuen weaves texts and imagery to tell these stories.

Through zines, comics, lovingly crafted artists books and – new for this exhibition – site-specific artworks, Yuen’s body of work comes off the pages and onto the walls. In precise and attentive craftsmanship, Yuen brings dimension to both the known and the overlooked histories of immigrant labour. Drawing from oral histories and archival research inspired by Yuen’s own family history, Cheap! Diligent! Faithful! acknowledges the complexities of labour and immigration in this country – and lifts up the small, remarkable details of lived experience. Yuen’s works take us to Cumberland’s small but thriving Chinatown in 1888, a Chinese grocery store in 1880s Yale, the first workers’ unions in Vancouver’s Chinatown, and introduces us to fascinating but nearly forgotten figures along the way.

The exhibition includes the launch of Yuen’s new publication that explores the graphic and cultural history of Ho Sun Hing Printers, which closed in 2014 after 106 years of business in Vancouver’s Chinatown.

grunt gallery will be presenting an online artist talk by Marlene Yuen in partnership with Vancouver Art Book Fair. Details to be announced soon.

Capacity in the gallery will be limited for the health and safety of all during the pandemic. We will have hand sanitizer and disposable masks available. Some components of this exhibition will also be available via QR code for online access.

The gallery is open Tuesday through Saturday, 12pm to 5pm.

Accessibility:

grunt gallery is accessed from the sidewalk via a 106” long, 64” wide concrete ramp that rises 12”. The slope is 1 : 8.75. There are no rails on the ramp. The front entrance is a manually operated outward-swinging double door with a total width of 64”. Entry to the Media Lab behind the gallery space is via a 42” wide passage and entry to the neighbouring amenity space is through a manually operated outward swinging double door with a total width of 70”. No stairs, inclines, or elevators are necessary to access the public areas once inside the gallery.

grunt gallery has a single gender neutral washroom that is accessed via a 31” wide doorway with a sliding pocket door with a door handle that is 40” high. The toilet has a 10” clearance on the left side and a 21” clearance in front, with a support bar on the left side. The sink height is 34”.