© Lisa Tang Liu
© Lisa Tang Liu
As a naturalized American citizen of Chinese ancestry, who immigrated to the United States at age
nine, Lisa Tang Liu says, "I have spent most of my life pondering what it means to be American."
"The cowboy has long been a symbol of the American spirit, and I find myself drawn to it," she
says. "To me, it stands for freedom, self-reliance, adventure, new frontiers, and optimism - values
that I love about our country."
A series of her photographs, Cowboys, is featured at The Griffin Museum at the Aberjona River
Gallery in Winchester, MA, September 9 through November 7. An opening reception is October 5,
6-7:30 p.m.
Liu's first opportunity to photograph a cowboy was at a 2004 workshop held by her mentors,
internationally known photographers Joe DiMaggio and JoAnne Kalish. This body of work developed
from her various trips across the United States.
"People are often surprised to see that the photographer of these images is a person of Chinese
descent," Liu says. "As a teenager growing up in white, suburban New Jersey, I had been very
self-conscious of being different. But as I age, I have come to realize that labels people impose
on me do not matter. It is the identity I chose that ultimately counts. I am proud of my Chinese
heritage, and I am proud of being American. This body of work is an expression of this liberating
realization."
Liu, of Quincy, MA, is a graduate of Wellesley College and studied at Ritsumeikan University in
Kyoto, Japan, and the New England School of Photography in Boston. Her work has been shown in many
exhibitions and is the corporate collection of Bank of America in Providence and Lincoln, Rhode
Island.
Lisa Tang Liu will give a talk on Cowboys at the Griffin's Senior Sunday on October 17th at 3 PM.
Free and open to the public
The Griffin Museum at the Aberjona River Gallery is at the Aberjona Rehabilitation and Nursing
Center, 184 Swanton St., Winchester, MA. It is open seven days a week, 11 AM - 5 PM. Visitors
should enter at the parking lot entrance and see the receptionist.
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The Aberjona Rehabilitation and Nursing Center, the newest of the three Salter HealthCare
facilities, provides both short term rehabilitation and long term care. There are 123 beds in this
modern facility. A special wing with separate entrance and dining room is available for those
patients who require a short stay to regain their ability to live independently in the community. A
Social Worker helps the resident with adjustment issues and coordinates home care services. In
addition to providing intensive short term rehabilitation, Aberjona now as a 41 bed
Alzheimer’s unit that is designed to provide comfort for both the patients and their family
members. For more information, visit the The Aberjona Rehabilitation and Nursing Center.
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