It’s the 85th anniversary of LA’s iconic landmark, Union Station. To celebrate, they are featuring an exhibition called “Where You Stand: Chinatown 1880 to 1939.”
The exhibit will tie back to the origins of the station as it currently stands in the exact location of LA’s original Chinatown.
Junior Sanya Verma shared her love for the art and history of Union Station that’s recognized in the exhibit.
Sanya Verma: I’m really glad that there’s a place that so many people see every day and are like crossing by recognizing the community that was there before them, and teaching more people about the history of like Chinatown in Los Angeles specifically.
Verma appreciates how the art in Union Station reflects the community it serves.
Verma: I go to Union Station quite a bit, and I take the Metro, I take the train. So I’m there are a lot and I love seeing like the artwork on the walls, the murals. There’s an enormous fish tank. I think it’s great. I think the art in Union Station is super diverse, and it gives a voice to a lot of local artists from L.A. As a student at Kaufman, I really like that Union Station gives a platform to all aspiring artists and dancers like myself.
The exhibition will begin with a traditional lion dance performance by the local students of the East Wind Foundation and will continue with a walk-through led by Metro Art.
Heidi Zeller, Metro Art’s senior manager of cultural planning and arts and community enrichment discussed the goals and purpose of this exhibition.
Heidi Zeller: One thing that’s so fascinating about this particular exhibition, is that we’re telling a story that’s not visible, right? I mean, the history of that site, you know, before it was Union Station, this train station and transportation hub for the region, you know, Chinatown did exist there. And it was a very vibrant community with people who lived there and worked there and went to school there. L.A. is such a city of people who are coming from all over the country and the world and might not know that history, even people who grew up here. So we’re trying to tell that story and and do it justice.”
LA’s original Chinatown carries a lot of history and dates all the way back to the 19th century. It was once an extremely bustling and vibrant community filled with families, businesses and associations.
Mayen Alcantara, the senior manager of transportation planning and arts and community enrichment for Metro Art shared more about just how meaningful the exhibition will be for the Los Angeles community, especially those with families connected to the original Chinatown.
Mayen Alcantara: One of the really special things about the event that we have tonight is the multi generational connection, that is subtly highlighted. We have students from the East Wind Foundation, and we have living members of the descendants of the families whose stories are associated with exhibition. What we’re hoping is that people understand that this is the history, and there was no specific end date. These legacies, these stories, these families, these traditions are continuing, right? It’s a living breathing thing.”
You can join in and be a part of Union Station’s history and legacy beginning tonight at 5:30.
For Annenberg Media, I’m Pickle Coleman.