In the Sprague Art Gallery at Harvey Mudd College (HMC), mahjong comes to life. Huge mahjong tiles modeled out of cardboard and paper ascend from the floor, their intricate designs immediately drawing the eye. A screen in the corner plays videos discussing mahjong’s cultural ties to media, and pedestals display text explaining the game’s long and storied history.
“Mahjong and Its Cultural Forms” opened on Sept. 14, and will be on view until Nov. 20. Each element within the exhibition comes together to tell a story about the cultural importance of mahjong as both a generational practice and art form.
Alongside mahjong tiles in a range of forms, the exhibition also presents a community archive and will host public programming throughout the semester.
The minds behind “Mahjong and Its Cultural Forms” are Jia Yi Gu and Angie Lin. Gu is an assistant professor of architecture at HMC and a Los Angeles-based curator and designer, while co-curator Lin organizes mahjong events in the greater LA area under the name “East Never Loses.” Lin’s videos about Mahjong, which she publishes on Instagram, were also featured in the exhibit.
“The exhibition is exploring all the ways mahjong became meaningful for many people and the different histories that were erased when we call this game ‘one game,’ but it’s actually hundreds of games,” Gu said.
Mahjong has been played since the 19th century, according to texts included in the exhibit. It was only introduced to the United States in the 1920s by Joseph Park Babcock, an oil company representative who had been working in China. Fascinated with the game, he sought to re-make it for a Western audience.
Restylized as “mahjongg” in the Chop Suey font (an offensive ‘Asian’ stylization of English lettering), the game was re-crafted into an exotic and adventurous new board game. This remaking of mahjong replaced its Chinese characters with Arabic numerals and introduced more “relatable” objects for a new American audience. Gu emphasized the cultural appropriation of mahjong in the West.
“There was a real erasure of those cultural histories and a lack of care around the game itself,” Gu said.
On the flip side, the exhibit discusses how mahjong holds immense cultural significance for many Chinese Americans. The videos playing in the exhibit discussed how the playing of mahjong in both Chinese and American communities led to an interesting spike in the game’s media representation.
Mahjong scenes in movies, including Amy Tan’s “The Joy Luck Club” (1993) and Ang Lee’s “Lust, Caution” (2007), had featured segments in the exhibit.
Regardless of how much attention it has received in American media, mahjong has always been a means of connection for Chinese communities.
Jess Zhang PO ’29 reflected on seeing cultural representation on campus.
“It’s really important, for me, as a Chinese woman in America,” Zhang said. “I love seeing reminders of my beautiful heritage around campus. I encourage everyone to play mahjong.”
“It’s really important, for me, as a Chinese woman in America,” Zhang said. “I love seeing reminders of my beautiful heritage around campus. I encourage everyone to play mahjong.”
Tyler Stefel SC ‘29 had never played mahjong before, but was inspired to explore this game as a way to expand his family tradition of playing board games to connect with one another.
“Every time we meet up with each other, we play Catan or some other form of video game,” Stefel said. ”I think that’s our main form of passing time with each other.”
For both those new to and long familiar with the game, mahjong provides an opportunity for connection. By considering media, community, culture and history, “Mahjong and Its Cultural Forms” captures this unique connectivity perfectly.
In addition to the exhibit, HMC is hosting mahjong office hours, a mahjong game night and a mahjong lecture all in collaboration with Angie Lin, Professor Lia Ti Gu, ASHMC, the HMC Mahjong Club and the 5C Board Game Club. The office hours will occur on Thursdays in October at 5:30–7:30pm. For more information, visit the website for the exhibit at: https://arts.hmc.edu/Mahjong-and-Its-Cultural-Forms
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