The Reset: Benevolence Hall by Kevin Matthew Wong

Welcome to Benevolence Hall. This is a free community space and art installation that celebrates the journey of Hakka Canadians to Tkaronto. 2000-years ago Hakka began an epic series of migrations, pushed by the forces of economic and political turmoil, violence and multiple upheavals. Hakka migration continues to this day. Starting in Northern China in 200 BC, the Hakka continued Southward through China and eventually scattered around the world to corners as distinct as Jamaica, Trinidad, Peru, Mauritius, South Africa, Hong Kong, Malaysia, and yes, Canada. This project is part of the Toronto History Museums’ Artist Mentorship Showcase: The Reset with Mentor Yung Yemi. Experience a range of art projects at 10 history museum sites.

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The Chinese characters for Hakka translate to “guest families.” These guest families travelled to many corners of the globe – Jamaica, Trinidad, Mauritius, India, Hong Kong, South Africa, and beyond. Today thousands of Hakka “guest families” call Tkaronto their home. In each new place they travelled, Hakka had to ask what it meant to be guests on others’ lands and how to preserve their own culture while respecting their hosts’ culture. These are urgent questions that Canadians are asking themselves as guests and uninvited settlers on Indigenous land.

In the Benevolence Hall you first encounter the Moon Gate video installation, which beckons visitors into the gallery and asks them to reflect on the lifecycle of a community. The Benevolence Hall also includes a reading room, which features reading materials on the Hakka and Chinese diaspora in Canada. The installation concludes with a short film (Benevolence, 2023) about Victoria B.C.’s Tam Kung Temple, Canada’s oldest Chinese temple, and the fight to keep its doors open.

More information at www.broadleafcreative.ca

Benevolence Hall

Created by Kevin Matthew Wong
Presented by Toronto History Museums
Produced by Broadleaf Creative with Why Not Theatre

Lead Artist, Concept, Production Design – Kevin Matthew Wong
Composer, Sound Design – Mandy Woo
Video Associate, Editor – Noel Pendawa
Production Manager – Crystal Lee
Exhibition Promotional Photography – Mary Anderson

This project is part of the Toronto History Museums’ Artist Mentorship Showcase: The Reset with Mentor Yung Yemi. Experience a range of art projects at 10 history museum sites.