Month: May 2025

Spring was filled with art activities at CALS, and we are gearing up for an art-filled summer!

In March, we celebrated the twentieth year that CALS has participated in the beloved downtown Little Rock event 2nd Friday Art Night (2FAN). To celebrate, we hosted the Dedicated Visual Art Studio & Gallery doing a free live screen-printing of a poster or t-shirt honoring our twenty years!

Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month, celebrated nationally each May, offers a time to reflect on the complex histories of AAPI communities in our state. While much attention is often given to prominent figures, the everyday voices that shape AAPI histories in Arkansas are often found in more fragile and often overlooked forms: ephemera.

To my mother:

I was at an age where I would excitedly point to your mistakes because you made them. But I couldn’t acknowledge your successes because the success was normal life. I knew when to expect food, water, bathing, and rest. I had space to sleep without sharing a bed.

As someone who seems white and benefits from white privilege, I don’t often find opportunities to dig into my Asian American Pacific Islander heritage. Rather than the monolid eyes that East Asians are known for, Southeast Asians are more often recognized for their darker skin pigment. A person who is half Asian may have pale skin with freckles or tan skin.