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Asian American artists living in Redmond are continuously making contributions in the art scene, contributing to Chinese American history and making the city increasingly diverse and vibrant. Exploring these individuals' unique perspectives brought by their experiences as Asian Americans and cultural heritage can show us how these identities influence their work.
-- Isabella Y.
Little Masters Club Volunteer
"Mrs. Yin-Wah Ashton, a native of Hong Kong and an artist in the Northwest for more than six years, teaches the art of classical Chinese painting in a workshop at the Marymoor Museum. Her art work has been exhibited at the Bumbershoot Art Festival, the Portland Art Museum, Gallery West in Portland, and at the Olympic Hotel in Seattle."
Sammamish Valley News, 1975
Yin-Wah Ashton also served as the assistant curator of Asian Arts for the Seattle Art Museum.
Artist Cheryll Leo-Gwin, also a charter member of the Redmond Arts Commission, designed the Bridge to Brotherhood mural in Redmond's Flagpole Plaza to celebrate the diverse ethnicity of King County’s residents. Leo-Gwin is a fourth-generation American of Chinese descent whose inspiration for this artwork was both her personal experience with racial prejudice and the histories of local immigrants.
"But Leo-Gwin added that the photos show 'the building blocks of what is America. They are everyone. They are all of us.'"
Seattle Times, 1997
Photo by HominyGrits007, CC BY-SA 4.0,
Robert Peng and his wife, Sheau-Ling, became U.S. citizens soon after immigrating from Taiwan. Building on the skills he had developed as a member of the "Republic of China Pottery Research Association" he founded Free Form Pottery in his Redmond home.
'It has taken me more than 10 years to develop my glazes,' he said, displaying the glaze-sample shards of stoneware in dozens of boxes. He is most proud of a reduction firing of a copper-base glaze that produces both deep red and blue in the same firing."
Seattle Post Intelligencer, 2000
Artist Jing Jing Wang was commissioned by the Redmond Arts and Culture Commission to create Redmond's most recent piece of Asphalt Art.
"...the artist facilitated robust public outreach with the LGBTQIA+ community and used their feedback to create an inspiring welcoming experience. The crosswalk, like the flag that inspired it, was designed to create more inclusive spaces for all."
Seattle Times, 2023
In 2025, the Redmond Historical Society hosted artist and poet YongEr Liu, whose work uses traditional Chinese landscape painting and classical poetry to interpret local landmarks, such as the old Redmond School Bell and the Redmond Pioneer Cemetery.
CHIME Band
The CHIME Band was formed in October of 2004, by Hongyu Wu and other Chinese Microsoft Employees, utilizing both traditional Chinese instruments to create a fusion of Western and Eastern musical styles.
The band has been performing for over twenty years, fulfilling their mission to support events within the Asian American community, and to share Asian music and culture with others.
Since 2004, the Chime Band has performed in a variety of regional events and festivals, such as the Microsoft Asian Spring Festival, the Seattle Chinese Art and Culture Festival, and the UW's Spring Festival Gala.
In 2014, the band had their first Solo Concert at the Red Lion Inn Hotel and in 2015, the group recorded their first original song.
"...the Chime band introduces the Chinese art forms and musical traditions to a huge community. With this, growing awareness and cultural exchange is being fostered, by showcasing the beautiful traditions that have been passed down for generations by immigrants decades ago to current community members, the Chime band is encouraging growing conversation and unity among the promotion of cultural exchange."
-- Isabella Y.
Little Masters Club Volunteer
The CHIME Band in 2004, and today:
View a timeline of some of the groups accomplishments and milestones
Redmond Poet Laureates
Established in 2008, Redmond's Poet Laureate program has helped to build a more literate and understanding community through poetry and the literary arts by broadening the awareness of poetry and expressing the spirit of Redmond. Each poet brings a unique perspective to this role, which allows them to engage with Redmond's history in new and interesting ways.
Shin Yu Pai was served as the Redmond Poet Laureate from 2015 to 2017. During her tenure, she explored different ways to engage with audiences, while connecting with Redmond's history and sense of place.
In an Interview with The Seattle Review of Books, Shun Yu Pai noted, "Redmond is a city that is very much made up of many immigrants from Southeast Asia, and it was really great to be able to draw some of those folks out with some of those things I’m trying to do."
Her animated poem “Heyday" explores Redmond's history of logging. And, in the exhibit, “Animating Archives: Contemporary Chlorophyll Prints she recreated historical images of Redmond and its residents -- including You Hong Woo -- as chlorophyll prints on leaves that were harvested from locations around the city.
In 2023, Ching-In Chen was appointed poet laureate of Redmond, Washington, through 2025.
They are also a community organizer and advocate, specifically in Asian American communities, and in coalition with other communities of color and LGBTQIA+ communities.
Their Read Local Eat Local project partnered poets with local establishments, such as restaurants, grocery stores, community gardens, food banks, and more to celebrate the spirit of culture through poetry.
Ching-In Chen invited community members to submit poems for the project based on the themes of food, harvest, and the community. Selected poems were printed on postcards and distributed to businesses participating in the project.
Click here to read Isabella's full research on Chinese American artists in Redmond
Asian American artists living in Redmond are all continuously making contributions in the art scene, contributing to the Chinese American history and making the city increasingly diverse and vibrant. Exploring these individuals' unique perspectives brought by their experiences as Asian Americans and cultural heritage can show us how these identities influence their work. The contributions of the current Redmond City Poet Laureate Dr. Ching-In Chen among others are ones that should be celebrated and recognized.
Shin Yu Pai
Shin Yu Pai is a renowned poet in the Redmond area; she has published several popular poems. Some of her many achievements include being awarded the Shelley Memorial Award, awards from the City of Seattle’s Office of Arts and Culture, among many others. Shin Yu Pai has received widespread recognition, as her works have been featured in several magazines and publications internationally. Among her active role and contributions to the poet community, she is also an active member of the photography community. In one specific poem written by Shin Yu Pai, Burning Monk-which is written about the famous Vietnamese monk Thích Quảng Đức, discusses a prominent event in the history of Buddhism. A line from the poem, “bloodless protest to awaken the heart of the oppressor,” is describing the persecution of Buddhists in Vietnam in 1960s, and how Thích Quảng Đức had sought to end the oppression by becoming a martyr for his religion. Themes and motifs related to the history of Asian countries, highlighting oppression, religion and many significant events are commonly seen in Shin Yu Pai’s work. Her poems play a great part in showcasing the ways that our identities can often influence our works and art.
Ching In Chen
Another esteemed poet in the Redmond and greater Seattle scene is Ching-In Chen. Ching-In Chen is a highly recognized and respected writer and poet; they are the current Poet Laureate of the city of Redmond. They are a gender-queer Chinese American poet living in the Seattle area. Among these accomplishments, they are a strong and valiant advocate for many marginalized and underrepresented communities. Their works are known to include and speak out on subjects of immigration and identity through their poems and writing. In The Heart’s Traffic- one of Ching-In Chen’s most recognized novel poems, the story depicted in the poem follows the life of a young girl named Xiaomei. Xiaomei’s experiences with grief, loss, and even love are shown and explored throughout this story, Ching In Chen effectively uses poetic styles and forms to portray the authentic, challenging, and emotional experiences of being a Chinese immigrant in America.
Chime Band
In terms of contributions to art and history in the Redmond & greater Seattle area, the Chime Band has served as an incredible representation of how Chinese Americans are actively utilizing their own talents and to raise awareness both culturally and socially. Formed in October of 2004, the Chime Band has been giving back to the community ever since. Beyond this, the band has been uplifting the community with their musical performances. One of the main aspects of Chime Band is that it was founded by former Microsoft engineers, being how the name CHIME band originated. (Chinese Microsoft Engineers) The Chime Band has done lots for the Asian community specifically in terms of community service: hosting fundraising events to support Chinese families in collaboration with the Little Masters Club, performing at public events, and more.
The Chime Band’s impact and contributions to the Asian community goes beyond just community service, though. The Chime Band has performed in several events and festivals, some notably being the Microsoft Asian Spring Festival, the Seattle Chinese Art and Culture Festival, and the UW's Spring Festival Gala. With the utilization of many traditional Chinese instruments-such as the Suona-and the fusion of Western and Eastern musical genres and styles, the Chime Band has certainly earned their illustrious and popular repute with all groups and audiences. With all these performances in the greater Seattle area, the Chime band introduces the Chinese art forms and musical traditions to a huge community. With this, growing awareness and cultural exchange is being fostered, by showcasing the beautiful traditions that have been passed down for generations by immigrants decades ago to current community members, the Chime band is encouraging growing conversation and unity among the promotion of cultural exchange. The bridging of the connection between decades of Chinese Americans, and the history behind how these artist practices are heard and seen in the community today are discussions that are their music has brought to light.
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