Textile exhibit celebrates the art and history of immigrant women

“Hands at Work: Textile Art from Immigrant Journeys” opened at the Chinese-American Planning Council on May 26. The exhibit features embroidery, patchwork, weavings and mixed-media works from 12 immigrant women, telling stories of family, migration, hard work and joy.

Curator Lin Qiqing is a textile artist who teaches workshops at the Chinese-American Planning Council Older Adult Center in Sunset Park. She started teaching weaving classes at the center last year through the Brooklyn Arts Council’s education program, which pairs teaching artists with residencies at schools and older adult centers throughout Brooklyn.

During the six-week program, Lin taught and led sessions on various textile art forms. She quickly discovered that many of her students excelled at handwork. Through conversations, Lin learned that many of them migrated to the United States as young women and worked in the garment industry. For decades, they provided for their families and raised children through sewing and weaving.

Kam Chee Mui immigrated to New York from Hong Kong in 1979. For more than 30 years, she worked as a seamstress at children’s clothing companies, where she made production samples. The work required precision, with almost no excess allowed in the seam allowance. A self-taught seamstress, Kam helped her mother with piecework as a teenager, adding embroidery and beading to sweaters and gloves.

Her featured work is a colorful weaving piece. A pair of hands sits in the middle of the canvas, formed by buttons she collected from the garment factory where she worked.

Xuezhen Lin learned about the class through the council’s group chat. “All of us are friends now,” Lin said, gesturing toward the participants.

“We are sisters!” chimed in Bihua Liu, a student and participating artist. “It’s also my first time. The teacher encouraged us to create more.”

“When learning handcrafts, I feel a deep sense of joy. When I make artwork, I have a deep sense of achievement,” Meiyu He said. Her works include weavings and patchwork pieces with rabbit motifs. “In 1978, I was assigned to work at the knitting and crafts pavilion of the Canton Fair. I saw a rug with a rabbit pattern there. It felt so lively and cheerful, as if I had stepped into a small world of animals,” He explained.

“Many of them worked in the garment industry, which was the most common job for immigrant women of their generation,” Lin said. “They used to use their hands to make a living. Now they are using their hands to create things and artwork. I’m really grateful to have the opportunity to bring textile art back to their hands.”

The exhibit runs from May 26 to June 26 at the Chinese-American Planning Council Older Adult Center, located on the third floor at 4101 Eighth Ave.