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Meet artist Steffie Yee 余淑婷 from the exhibition Chinese Restaurant Playground
July 16, 2024

Meet artist Steffie Yee 余淑婷 from the exhibition Chinese Restaurant Playground

Interview

A visual arts exhibition by Steffie Yee 余淑婷
A nostalgic look back at childhood memories within her parents’ Chinese restaurant 
12 June—15 September 2024, Footscray Community Arts 

“The Asian experience is not a monolith”

Chinese Restaurant Playground is an evocative exhibition about childhood, imaginative play, and finding joy within the frenetic settings of a bustling regional Chinese restaurant. The exhibition captures themes of nostalgia, family, food and community. It showcases a collation of material and an perspective of Hunter Valley history that is rarely represented.

“Having served four generations of customers for over 40 years, my parents’ Chinese restaurant, Yee’s, was the backdrop of my childhood.“

Steffie presents a multimedia collection of finished works, and works in progress including a large-scale wok installation with multilingual animations, videos, illustrations and archival photographs spanning her childhood.

“From rollerblading on the tiles through the restaurant, using pot lids as cymbals, making play dough from spring roll pastry batter, and riding a motorbike in the yard behind the restaurant, this exhibition is an artistic documentation of my memories as a child of Malaysian-Chinese restaurant owners in Branxton, NSW”

Much of the exhibition is a depiction of family joy, playfulness and creativity. Contrary to common narratives that paint migrant stories as solely poignant or sad, Steffie offers a more whimsical and lighthearted portrayal of the migrant experience.

Courtesy the Artist

“There’s been a big surge of Asian diaspora stories coming out in the last few years, and a lot of the stories that are coming out focus on Asian people in major cities. I want to show another dimension of what the Asian diaspora experience could be.”

Steffie seeks to celebrate the people behind the ‘local Chinese restaurant’, whose stories risk being lost due to language barriers and a long record of cultural history that predominantly spotlights Anglo-Celtic and European migration – particularly in regional Australian narratives.

Courtesy the Artist

“Your classic Aussie-Chinese restaurant is likely to disappear in the next decade or two. As the story goes; the parents migrate to a new country and do the hard yards in the restaurant, so their children can pursue a less laborious form of work in the future.

These restaurants are a symbol for survival, resilience, and hope for Chinese migrants who settled in this country.”

Courtesy the Artist

ABOUT STEFFIE YEE 余淑婷
Steffie Yee 余淑婷 is an animation director and illustrator, whose work weaves together digital and mixed-media processes involving stop-motion, 2D & 3D animation. With a background in music, her animation style is driven by the synergy between sound and image. In addition to creating animation for music, film, TV, and commercials, Steffie’s work has appeared in the forms of illustration, public art installation, and live visual installation for events.

Born and raised in the Hunter Valley in NSW (Wonnarua Country), Steffie draws creative inspiration from her unique upbringing in regional Australia and her Malaysian-Chinese heritage.

Steffie’s work has screened internationally at the Atlanta Film Festival, Melbourne International Film Festival, and Palm Springs ShortFest, where her strata cut animated film The Lost Sound (2018) received two nominations for Best Animated Short and Best Animated Student Short. In 2023, her work screened at the TEDxSydney Youth conference which celebrates the ideas and work of young creators. In the online space, Steffie’s work has earned features on Vimeo Staff Picks, Motionographer, and BOOOOOOOM TV.

Presented by Footscray Community Arts with support from the Australian Film Television and Radio School

Exhibition Dates: 12 June—15 September 2024
Location: Roslyn Smorgan Gallery, Footscray Community Arts, 
45 Moreland Street Footscray