Exhibition Opening and Panel with Arlene Chan, Koby S, Mel N and friends
About this Event
Kwong Chow, Lichee Garden, Sai Woo, Nanking Tavern, Charlie’s Meat and Seafood, Pearl Court Restaurant, Rol San. What do they have in common? They stood across Old Chinatown, Chinatown East and Chinatown West. And now, all of them are gone.
This project presents miniature models of these seven important Chinatown sites, assembled from community memory and archival records, alongside some of the records used in their creation. In 2024 and 2025, the models were the focus of intergenerational storytelling sessions where memories of Toronto’s Chinatowns were shared by over 200 people across four generations at Cecil Community Centre and Scadding Court Community Centre. Together, these memories honour Chinatown’s past while reminding us that Chinatown’s story is still being written every day.
Join us for the exhibition opening and panel discussion with historians, researchers, and community members Arlene Chan, Koby Song-Nichols, Melanie Ng and Linda Zhang alongside architectural researchers and model-makers Samira El Badaui, Kayla Estacio, Lana Dang, Cindy He, Jenny Hu, Khadeejah Kazi, Avory Lai, Alisa Lau, Jhony Li Feng, Tina Lin, Nathan Man, Areeba Saleem, Derek Shin, Jacquelyne Jane Villaspin.
The exhibition also features newly digitized archival materials alongside reproductions of reports, studies and council minutes from our 1960s Save Chinatown Campaign to save Old Chinatown. The exhibition runs through Feb 26, 2027.
Image: Nanking blueprint, Series 410, File 4628, Item 1
Image: Lichee Garden, Fonds 1268, Series 1317, Item 1086
Image: Sai Woo, Series 2523, File 1570, Item 2
PS! We'll also be hosting a Thank You Chinatown Pop-Up and Chinatown Fundraiser! Proceeds are going to the Toronto Chinatown Land Trust Stewardship Fund and Cecil Community Centre.
✨Thank You Chinatown 谢谢唐人街 is a resting spot to connect and reflect in the ongoing fight against displacement. We are working to be an intercultural hub and intergenerational living archive that brings together neighbours, workers, and artists through accessible programming and thoughtful community-led projects. As a gift shop, visitors will find playful keepsakes in the front and meaningful collaborations in the back.
We work to protect Chinatown’s cultural life, acting in solidarity with the people who keep the neighbourhood moving every day.
Drop in for the local goods and stay to celebrate the stories and creativity that make Chinatown, 𝘊𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘰𝘸𝘯.
Where is it happening?
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
CAD 0.00
