Shin Yu Pai's 'Ten Thousand Things' at Wing Luke Finds Cross-Cultural Connection in Objects Both Ordinary and Extraordinary

A small cast-iron bathtub. A plaster face mask. A spice rack full of spices. A to-go plate wrapped in foil.

These are some of the "things" on display at former Seattle Civic Poet Shin Yu Pai's new exhibition at the Wing Luke Museum, Ten Thousand Things, which will be on view until spring 2027. Based on Pai's podcast of the same name, the exhibition brings together a collection of meaningful objects, art pieces, and other items from a variety of Asian American artists around the city. 

The result is a study of both the vibrancy of Asian American culture as well as a look at how the things we carry with us tell the stories of our lives, ourselves, and our culture. In its mix of extraordinary objects, like a bronze vial filled with Ganges River water, to ordinary objects, like a palm-leaf broom, Ten Thousand Things inspires visitors to think deeply about the things they interact with on a day-to-day basis.

"I feel very aware that objects have stories — whether they're mundane or not," said Pai in a recent interview about the process of selecting which objects to curate for the exhibition. "For artist friends or writer friends, I'll pay attention to what's on their bookshelves or on their desk. What are the things around them that they may look at or handle every day? Those are things that I might ask questions about, that likely have a story."

Pai got the idea for the project during the second year of the pandemic. Following the horrific, targeted Atlanta spa shootings — which left eight dead, including six Asian women — and a wave of anti-Asian hate crimes, she found it imperative to do something. "I felt really strongly that I wanted to see and hear different kinds of stories in the media about Asian Americans and the Asian American community," Pai reflected. Thus, in the podcast form of Ten Thousand Things, she invites a slew of Asian American guests from across the country to discuss artifacts that have shaped their lives. 

For some, that artifact is tangible: Chef Tiffany Ran talked about a Tatung cooker gifted by her mother, while Congressman Andy Kim examined the blue suit he wore while cleaning up the Capitol rotunda after the Jan. 6 riot. But for others, the idea of an artifact is a bit more conceptual, like chef Chera Amlag's beloved Hood Famous ube cheesecake or poet Ebo Barton's name. These things don't necessarily have to be things we hold; rather, they can be placeholders, labor, buildings, or symbols that give significance to our lives.

That ethos is reflected in the items chosen for Wing Luke's display of Ten Thousand Things. Included are several pieces from the podcast itself, like Ran's Tatung cooker in a cool steel color and Etsuko Ichikawa's orbs of vitrified glass, inspired by a visit to the Hanford nuclear site where she was given a piece of the material, which is used to encase and bury nuclear waste (in the exhibition, the orbs are lit up for visitors' enjoyment).

One outstanding piece is an abacus that was previously owned by Seattle musician Tomo Nakayama's grandmother, Kimiko, who lived in Kochi, Japan. When Nakayama immigrated to the United States from Japan as a kid, he only saw his family back home every so often, keeping in touch with Kimiko over the occasional phone call. In 2011 — many years after his grandmother's passing — he returned to her home and found a wooden abacus that used to live by the rotary phone. After asking his aunt for permission to take it home, Nakayama now keeps the abacus in a bookshelf along with other important mementos from his youth. 

"Having an object that you know was touched and used by someone you love brings you that much closer to them," Nakayama said in a recent interview. "I never really talked about it before this podcast came up. It's such a neat idea to give this platform to share these stories, because I think so many people have these sorts of family heirlooms and ordinary objects that hold so much meaning and memory."

The exhibition also offers visitors a chance to share their own stories and objects. On a wall near the entrance is a rotary phone hooked up to a recorder where people can leave a message for Pai about an object that has personal or familial significance in their life. Periodically, the museum will go through recordings and, halfway through Ten Thousand Things' run, refresh the show with new items, including ones from visitors. 

At a time when immigrants are being mercilessly targeted by the federal government for deportation, Ten Thousand Things offers a much-needed vision of immigration, belonging, and community. 

"Ten Thousand Things has always been very much about telling humanizing stories about basically who our neighbors are," said Pai. "When I started making the show, the idea of using objects was very purposeful, because relating to an object might be easier than relating to a Person of Color. So [someone] is ready to receive this story and to then want to connect. Like, 'Actually, they have a lot of things in common with me,' or 'I didn't know that about that culture.' It creates this kind of curiosity, a bridge."

Ten Thousand Things will be up at Wing Luke Museum until spring 2027. The fourth season of the podcast returns in May.

Editor's note: an update was made to clarify the source of an item in the exhibit.