Tong Yan Gaai (or Chinatown in Cantonese)

Tong Yan Gaai (or Chinatown in Cantonese) (2012-2024) is a newly commissioned installation of four lightboxes that show the connection between Toronto’s Chinese community and Union Station. In the late 1800s, workers from China came to work on the Canadian Pacific Railway. They started Toronto’s first Chinatown near Union Station. In the 1950s, the city took over the old Chinatown to build a new city hall. This caused businesses to shut down and people to move, creating a new Chinatown further west. The railway played a big part in creating many Chinatowns across Canada, including in the Greater Toronto Area.

As part of the Biennial, an additional selection of images from the Tong Yan Gaai (Chinatown) series are on display at Union Station.

Morris Lum is a photographer and artist whose practice explores the Chinese Canadian community’s hybrid identities and the evolution of Chinatowns across North America. His work, which blends photography, documentary practices, and archival materials, speaks to concepts of home and belonging, often by unveiling how Chinese history is portrayed in the media.

Commissioned by the Toronto Biennial of Art and co-presented with Toronto Pearson Airport. Made possible with the generous support of Eleanor and Francis Shen and Partners in Art.