The Asian Cultural Council (ACC) is a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing international cultural exchange between Asia and the U.S. and between the countries of Asia through the arts. Founded by John D. Rockefeller III in 1963,ACC has invested over $100 million in grants to artists and arts professionals representing 16 fields and 26 countries through over 6,000 exchanges.[1] ACC supports $1.4 million in grants annually for individuals and organizations.[2]
ACC awards fellowship grants to artists and scholars and project grants for organizations in three categories of cross-cultural exchange:Asia-to-U.S.,U.S.-to-Asia,and intra-Asia. The programming of each grant is customized to the goals of the grant recipient.
ACC is headquartered in New York City with regional offices and affiliate foundations in Hong Kong (ACC Hong Kong Foundation,est. 2015),Manila (ACC Philippines Foundation,est. 2000),Taipei (ACC Taiwan Foundation,est. 1995),and Tokyo (ACC Japan Foundation,est. 2018).
History
The Asian Cultural Program of the JDR 3rd Fund (1963–1980)
The JDR 3rd Fund was incorporated in 1963 as a private non-profit by John D. Rockefeller 3rd "to stimulate,encourage,promote,and support activities important to human welfare."[3] The Asian Cultural Program of the JDR 3rd Fund—precursor to the Asian Cultural Council—was established to promote cultural exchange in the arts between the United States and Asia. ACC’s founding director,Porter McCray,was the former director of circulating exhibitions at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City.[4][5] Through the 1960s,the Asian Cultural Program of the JDR 3rd Fund made 80 to 100 grants annually to artists,scholars,students and institutions. Richard S. Lanier succeeded Porter McCray as director in 1975.[6]
Archives concerning the JDR 3rd Fund,the Asian Cultural Program,and the Asian Cultural Council can be found at the Rockefeller Archive Center.[3]
The Asian Cultural Council (1980–)
Following the death of John D. Rockefeller 3rd in 1978,the Asian Cultural Program became the Asian Cultural Council (ACC) and was established as a publicly supported operating foundation. Blanchette Hooker Rockefeller,wife of John D. Rockefeller 3rd,became ACC’s first Chairman and Elizabeth J. McCormack,director of the Rockefeller Philanthropy Office,became Vice President. Subsequent directors were Ralph Samuelson (1991–2008),Jennifer P. Goodale (2008–2013) and Miho Walsh (2013–2020),and ACC's current executive director is Judy Kim.
ACC Hong Kong Foundation Limited Chairman:Daphne King
ACC Taiwan Foundation Chairman:Douglas Tong Hsu
ACC Japan Foundation Chairman:Kazuko Aso
ACC Philippines Foundation Inc. Chairman:Ernest L. Escaler
Programs
ACC Grantee,Japanese contemporary artist Takashi Murakami,at Versailles in September 2010
ACC provides grants for individual fellowships,projects and organizations,graduate studies,and travel. They support activities that involve cultural immersion;cross-cultural engagement;and relationship building,collaboration,or exchange of best practices among arts professionals.[8][9] In addition to funding,it is common for grantees to receive mentoring and personal introductions,and access to an international network of alumni.
In addition to grants,ACC organizes public programs to facilitate understanding and dialogue around cultural exchange. This includes forums,convenings,and public programs such as the East-West Dialogue series,Cultural Conversations,and inDialogue. In 2000 and 2003,ACC organized Forums on Arts and Culture in the Mekong Region with funding from the Rockefeller Foundation,and in 2017,the ACC Forum:Making the Case for Cultural Exchange through funding by the Henry Luce Foundation. In 2018,ACC,La MaMa E.T.C.,and Beijing Contemporary Art Foundation co-organized a panel on international artist residences.[10]
East-West Dialogue is an annual lecture series engaging leaders from the arts and cultural fields in Asia and the West. It was established in 2013 through an endowment gift from Tsuneko and Shoji Sadao. Speakers have included author Pico Iyer,writer and editor Ian Buruma,American theater director Peter Sellars,Japanese architect Fumihiko Maki (ACC 1976),president of Japan Society of Boston Peter Grilli,and architect Kengo Kuma (ACC 1985). In 2021,ACC hosted its first online festival East West Fest,[11] culminating in an East-West Dialogue with Pultizer Prize-winning author Viet Thanh Nguyen (ACC 2010) and multidisciplinary artist Tiffany Chung (ACC 2015).[12]
Cultural Conversations is an in-house lecture series that features ACC alumni and their work. Conversations have been led by alumni such as wooden boat builder Douglas Brooks (ACC multiple grants 2008-2017),Shiro Nakane and the Japan Society (ACC multiple grants 1964-2015),artist Oscar Oiwa (ACC 2001),shamisen performer Hidejiro Honjo (ACC 2016),Taiwanese choreographer Cheng Tsung-lung (ACC 2011),[13] composer Matt Welch (ACC 2016),and scholar Urmila Mohan (ACC 2018).[14]
Below is a list of ACC programs. Those established through an initial donation,grant,or endowment have funding individuals or organizations noted in parentheses.
1983: ACC Japan-United States Program (Seiji Tsutsumi and the Seibu Saison group)
Ford Foundation Fellowship Program for individuals documenting and preserving the traditional arts of Asia (Ford Foundation)
Starr Foundation Visual Arts Program for artists and art specialists from Asia to travel to the United States (Starr Foundation)
1984: Samuel H. Kress Foundation Fellowships for American art history students conducting dissertation research in Asia (Samuel H. Kress Foundation)
1985: The Humanities Fellowship Program for American scholars and students carrying out research in Asia (National Endowment for the Humanities)
1986 The Hong Kong Arts Program—now called the China,Hong Kong and Macau Program—for artists,students and scholars from Hong Kong to research,study and create work in the United States (Asian Oceanic Group,British American Tobacco Company (Hong Kong) Limited and the Lee Hysan Foundation)
1987: The Asian Art and Religion Fellowship Program for American scholars,specialists and artists to undertake research and projects in Asia involving the intersection or religion and the arts (Laurance S. Rockefeller Jr.)
1993: The Indonesian Museum Development Program—organized in collaboration with the Nusantara Jaya Foundation and the Indonesia Directorate of Museums—for Indonesian museum professionals to intern in the United States and to help with museum workshop programs in Indonesia (Ford Foundation)
1994:
The Blanchette Hooker Rockefeller Fellowship Fund Committee was organized in Japan to establish an endowment honoring the memory of the late Blanchette Hooker Rockefeller
ACC Residency Program in Asia for American scholars,artists,and professionals to research,teach,and partake in residencies in Asia (Freeman Foundation)
1995:
ACC’s Taiwan Fellowship Program for the exchange of artists,scholars,and specialists between Taiwan and the United States,as well as Taiwan and other countries in Asia (Sino-American Foundation,now the ACC Taiwan Foundation)
China On-Site Seminar Program for the exchange of American and Chinese art history students (Henry Luce Foundation)
Ock Rang Cultural Foundation Fellowship Program for cultural exchange between Korea and the U.S. and Korea and other countries in Asia
1997:
The Cambodian Artists Mentorship Program to support performing arts training programs at the Royal University of Fine Arts in Phnom Penh (Rockefeller Foundation)
The Indonesia Cultural Management Assistance Project to support the management of cultural institutions in Indonesia (Ford Foundation)
2000:
The Philippines Fellowship Program for the exchange of artists,scholars,and specialists between the Philippines and the U.S.,and the Philippines and other countries in Asia (ACC Philippines Foundation)
2001: The Mekong Region Fellowship Program to assist individual artists,scholars,and specialists from Burma,Cambodia,Laos,Thailand,Vietnam,and China’s Yunnan Province to undertake research,training and creative projects in the United States or Asia (Rockefeller Foundation)
2005: The Mandarin Oriental Fellowship to support the preservation of indigenous arts,cultures,and traditions of Asia (Mandarin Oriental Foundation)
2007: American Artists and Museum Professionals Program (Henry Luce Foundation)
2008: The Starr Foundation Performing Arts Program for individuals and institutions working in the contemporary performing arts in Asia to travel to the United States (The Starr Foundation)
2011: Arts in Action Program to support arts communities in need of assistance for rebuilding after natural disasters (Mikimoto)
2012: The Elizabeth J. McCormack Fund was established as an endowment to support the general operations of ACC
2019: The ACC/BCAF Contemporary Arts Fellowship Program for exchange of artists from China and the United States (Beijing Contemporary Art Foundation)
John D. Rockefeller 3rd Award
The John D. Rockefeller 3rd Award is given to individuals from Asia or the U.S. who have made significant contributions to the international understanding,practice,or study of the visual or performing arts of Asia.[16]
2024:Takashi Murakami,Artist,Founder and President Kaikai Kiki Co.,Ltd.
Blanchette Hooker Rockefeller Award
The Asian Cultural Council established the Blanchette Hooker Rockefeller Award in 2009 in honor of its first Chairman,Blanchette Hooker Rockefeller,wife of John D. Rockefeller 3rd. The Blanchette Hooker Rockefeller Award honors the generosity of the enlightened individuals who believe ACC’s mission of furthering international dialogue,understanding,and respect between Asia and the U.S. through the transformative experience of cultural exchange.
The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government by an act of the U.S. Congress,signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson on September 29,1965. It is a sub-agency of the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities,along with the National Endowment for the Humanities,the Federal Council on the Arts and the Humanities,and the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
John Davison Rockefeller III was an American philanthropist. Rockefeller was the eldest son and second child of John D. Rockefeller Jr. and Abby Aldrich Rockefeller as well as a grandson of Standard Oil co-founder John D. Rockefeller. He was engaged in a wide range of philanthropic projects,many of which his family had launched,as well as supporting organizations related to East Asian affairs. Rockefeller was also a major supporter of the Population Council,and the committee that created the Lincoln Center in Manhattan.
The Cultural Center of the Philippines Foundation,Inc. is a government-owned and controlled corporation established to preserve,develop and promote arts and culture in the Philippines. The CCP was established through Executive Order No. 30 s. 1966 by President Ferdinand Marcos. Although an independent institution of the Philippine government,it receives an annual subsidy and is placed under the National Commission for Culture and the Arts for purposes of policy coordination. The CCP is headed by an 11-member Board of Trustees,currently headed by Chairperson Margarita Moran-Floirendo. Its current president is Arsenio Lizaso.
Alfred A. Yuson,also known as Krip Yuson,is a Filipino author of novels,poetry and short stories.
Rosalind Newman is veteran choreographer who has created a body of over 70 works.
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The Chiang Ching-kuo Foundation for International Scholarly Exchange is a private nonprofit organization located in Taipei,Taiwan,that provides support for research grants on Chinese studies in the humanities and social sciences at overseas institutions. It was founded in 1989 and named after Chiang Ching-kuo,the late President of the Republic of China from 1972 to 1988. The foundation also has a regional office in McLean,Virginia in the United States.
Choi Yan-chi is "one of few veteran female artists in Hong Kong." She is considered one of the pioneering artists,educators,and cultural advocates in Hong Kong,introducing new art forms such as installation and performance to the local art scene. In 1985,she presented a solo exhibition titled "An Extension into Space," which is considered the first major solo exhibition of installation art in Hong Kong. She has presented her work in numerous exhibitions in Hong Kong,New York,Germany,and Canada She is the co-founder of 1aspace,one of the oldest nonprofit art spaces in Hong Kong.
Anton Del Castillo is a multi-awarded and critically acclaimed Filipino visual artist known for the stunning craftsmanship and meticulous design of his artworks that meditate on critiques of modernism and contemporary life. His production of iconic and playful art objects such as sculptures produced in steel and paintings that resemble Byzantine icons,aside from other projects,have earned him recognition not only as an artist but as a master artisan and craftsman.
Para Site is an independent,non-profit art space based in Hong Kong. It was founded in 1996 by artists Patrick Lee,Leung Chi-wo,Phoebe Man Ching-ying,Sara Wong Chi-hang,Leung Mee-ping,Tsang Tak-ping and Lisa Cheung. It produces exhibitions,public programmes,residencies,conferences and educational initiatives that aim to develop a critical understanding of local and international contemporary art.
Emily Cheng is an American artist of Chinese ancestry. She is best known for large scale paintings with a center focus often employing expansive circular images... "radiantly colored,radially composed". She has won numerous awards including Pollock-Krasner Foundation Fellowship,2010,New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowship,1996,Yaddo Residency,1995,National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship,1982–1983.
Painting for me,is the evidence of an inquiry…It is the postulation made physical….It is the wall that penetrates….It is the mind reminded. It is the hunch made vivid. It is the reworking of the familiar. It is the shadow of the unfamiliar. It is the acting out of desire. It is the probe of limits. It is the life imaged. It is the eye engaged. Painting is luxury bounded.
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Holly Lee was an artist-photographer,best known for her portraits project,the Hollian Thesaurus. She was one of the pioneers of conceptual photography in Hong Kong,experimenting with Photoshop to create composite photographs that were reminiscent of oil paintings. Her work has been collected by the Hong Kong Heritage Museum and M+ Museum.
Jaffa Lam is a Chinese visual artist. She is known for her mixed-media sculptures and site-specific works that inquire into Hong Kong culture and history. Lam often uses recycled materials such as found fabric or wood from construction sites. She began focusing on community engagement and socially responsible art at the time of the SARS outbreak in Hong Kong in 2003. And since then,she has created many community-driven projects in Hong Kong and abroad. In 2006,she received the Asian Cultural Council's Desiree and Hans Michael Jebsen Fellowship. Her works have been acquired by public institutions,including Hong Kong Museum of Art,Hong Kong Heritage Museum,and Chinese University of Hong Kong. Lam is also known as an educator. She is currently Academic Head at the Hong Kong Art School.
Joyce Yu-Jean Lee is a visual artist working with video,photography,interactive installation and performance that combine social practice,institutional critique and activism together in an interdisciplinary practice. She is the founder of FIREWALL Internet Cafe social software consisting of a Google and Baidu dual-search engine that garnered backlash from Chinese state authorities in 2016.
The Center for US-China Arts Exchange was a private,not-for-profit,national organization with the mission to promote greater understanding and mutual cooperation between the United States and the People's Republic of China through interaction in the arts.
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