"nation, dissent, and bodies in public spaces"

Four Photographs
by Pei Wu

From the exhibition "In Search of Community"
San Francisco, California

The photography exhibition "In Search of Community" was held at the San Francisco Photo Center, from February 28 to March 31, 2004. Also see photographs by Angelica Cabande, Tiffany Eng, Pauline Liang, Rebecca Peng, Judith Williams Sandoval, Ai Sugano,

Photographs / Artist's Statement /

Artist's Statement

nation, dissent, and bodies in public spaces

dominant forms of economic survival, patriotism, and cynicism tell us to carry on business as usual, to focus on our private goals and pleasures in the face of war... here are the faces that didn't, speaking dissent with their voices and their bodies in the streets. -- Pei Wu

Click on images to see large versions.
photo by Pei Wu photo by Pei Wu photo by Pei Wu
jan.9.2003 san francisco.
remembering executive order 9066.
(Read more / Large version)
jan.18.2003 san francisco.
we do not like war.
(Read more / Large version)
jun.14.2003 fruitvale.
the flag.
(Read more / Large version)
photo by Pei Wu
jaug. 3. 2002 lawrence livermore national laboratory.
waiting for arrest/waiting for justice.
(Read more / Large version)
jun.14.2003 fruitvale.
the flag.

the chinese kuoming tang (kmt) claimed the island of taiwan (after the end of japanese colonization in 1945) as part of china and took over the island in 1949 after fleeing from the communists on the mainland, bringing this flag with them. his mother is japanese and his father's family was on the island before the arrival of the kmt. the kmt-taiwan-r.o.c. flag, the japanese flag, and the u.s. flag are all attached to him wherever he goes; he can only have a complex relationship to them-- and an ambiguous one. he is currently researching environmental justice issues in silicon valley, particularly in connection with transnational capital and corporate issues in toxic dumping and labor (chinese and taiwanese).


jan.18.2003 san francisco.
we do not like war.

what does it take to nurture children who demand justice and accountability of the world? what are the stories we tell? what are the games we play, the books we read, the food we eat, the work we do, lives we live?


jan.9.2003 san francisco.
remembering executive order 9066.

his mother: carries heritages from the chinese, thai, white-australian, japanese, lived through two years of u.s. bombings in WWII, twice a day every day, in tokyo and osaka. his father: an african american, cherokee vietnam vet, grandson of slaves, who met her through the u.s. occupation of japan. their son now works with kurdish communities in the bay area on asylum issues, as well as researching turkish nationalist violence against kurdish peoples, including u.s./western complicity.


aug. 3. 2002 lawrence livermore national laboratory.
waiting for arrest/waiting for justice.

the u.s. government has more than 10,000 nuclear warheads. every year near the anniversary of the utter destruction of hiroshima and nagasaki, nonviolent anti-nuclear protesters step on to lawrence livermore laboratory's property in protest of its work researching and testing nuclear weapons. then the protesters wait for livermore's "justice" to be carried out upon their bodies as they are arrested, booked, and released at the end of the day.
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-- Pei Wu



Published August 7, 2004.