An Alleged Wife (Quok Shee in the Redwoods), 2025
Quok Shee was a Chinese immigrant who arrived in San Francisco in 1916 and was detained at Angel Island while attempting to join her husband in the United States. After more than twenty months of imprisonment and legal struggle, a federal judge ruled that immigration officials had abused their authority and withheld critical evidence, leading to her release in 1918. Her case, Chew v. White, Immigration Commissioner (1917), remains a powerful example of the barriers faced by Chinese immigrants during the era of exclusion.
This portrait is based on a mugshot from Quok Shee's immigration case file. The original photograph captures a woman enduring confinement while maintaining a remarkable sense of dignity. Her carefully arranged hair and composed expression suggest both resilience and self-possession in the face of uncertainty.
Rather than recreating the conditions of her imprisonment, I imagined Quok Shee in the redwood forests of Northern California. Surrounded by cool greens and blues, she is temporarily removed from the surveillance, confinement, and bureaucratic violence that shaped her experience. The painting offers a moment of rest and reflection—a speculative act of care for a historical figure whose story survives largely through government records.
This work is part of an ongoing series of historical portraits that recover overlooked stories from Asian American history and explore their continuing relevance to contemporary conversations about migration, citizenship, belonging, and civil rights.
Artwork Details
Original oil painting on recycled cotton canvas
30 × 40 inches
One-of-one original artwork
Unframed
Signed by the artist
Limited-edition prints available
The recycled canvas used for this painting helps reduce textile waste and requires significantly less energy to produce than traditional cotton canvas, reflecting a commitment to more sustainable studio practices.
An Alleged Wife (Quok Shee in the Redwoods), 2025
Quok Shee was a Chinese immigrant who arrived in San Francisco in 1916 and was detained at Angel Island while attempting to join her husband in the United States. After more than twenty months of imprisonment and legal struggle, a federal judge ruled that immigration officials had abused their authority and withheld critical evidence, leading to her release in 1918. Her case, Chew v. White, Immigration Commissioner (1917), remains a powerful example of the barriers faced by Chinese immigrants during the era of exclusion.
This portrait is based on a mugshot from Quok Shee's immigration case file. The original photograph captures a woman enduring confinement while maintaining a remarkable sense of dignity. Her carefully arranged hair and composed expression suggest both resilience and self-possession in the face of uncertainty.
Rather than recreating the conditions of her imprisonment, I imagined Quok Shee in the redwood forests of Northern California. Surrounded by cool greens and blues, she is temporarily removed from the surveillance, confinement, and bureaucratic violence that shaped her experience. The painting offers a moment of rest and reflection—a speculative act of care for a historical figure whose story survives largely through government records.
This work is part of an ongoing series of historical portraits that recover overlooked stories from Asian American history and explore their continuing relevance to contemporary conversations about migration, citizenship, belonging, and civil rights.
Artwork Details
Original oil painting on recycled cotton canvas
30 × 40 inches
One-of-one original artwork
Unframed
Signed by the artist
Limited-edition prints available
The recycled canvas used for this painting helps reduce textile waste and requires significantly less energy to produce than traditional cotton canvas, reflecting a commitment to more sustainable studio practices.