The Architecture of Chinatown History Past and Present

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About

Eric Fong is a Toronto-based painter whose work explores urban culture and community through layered, narrative-driven compositions. Inspired by Toronto’s urban history, his paintings draw from archival research to reflect stories of immigration, neighbourhood change, and the everyday lives of working people.

Raised in Toronto, Eric has a deep connection to the Kensington-Chinatown area, where his grandparents settled after immigrating from China in the 1950s. Through family history and personal research, his paintings examine the evolving history of the neighbourhood, translating its complex social and cultural landscape into thoughtful visual narratives.

The Artist Talk explores the architectural relationship between Toisanese villages in Guangdong, China, and the development of North American Chinatowns. Focusing on buildings constructed by both returning migrants from North America and Chinese immigrants to North America, I examine how migration shaped a shared visual language across continents — blending Southern Chinese vernacular architecture with Western influences brought back through diaspora communities, and vice versa. Through historical research and visual analysis, the talk considers how architecture reflects memory, identity, and the movement of people between Toisan and cities such as Toronto, Vancouver, and San Francisco.

Visual exploration of art pieces within the gallery will be explored through the artist.

Serving Pearl River Delta Tea and snacks from @theloveoftealounge

Links

• website amazingmosspark.ca

Organizer

183 Gallery

183 Gallery- Amazing Moss Park Artists, Toronto-based multidisciplinary collective founded and curated by Carol Mark. It supports emerging and mid-career artists through collaborative exhibitions, community engagement and socially conscious programming. With visual art, photography, installation, poetry and performance creates projects that reflect Toronto’s diverse cultural landscape and evolving urban histories. The Collective collaborates with local, international artists and organizations to foster dialogue, inclusion and art experiences.

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