Year: 2025
Location: Edmonton
Profile: Artist Edith Chu was born in France to Chinese parents who had migrated through Hong Kong and Europe before settling in Edmonton in 1979. Her father, who had been a businessman in Hong Kong, opened Szechuen Cuisine in Edmonton in 1984. The restaurant remained family-run and served as both livelihood and cultural anchor until its closure in 2007. Chu, her siblings, aunt, and grandmother participated in running the restaurant. During junior high and high school, she resented having to work while her friends enjoyed themselves. Later, though, she appreciated that the hard work her family endured allowed them to have some interesting vacations and to make higher education affordable for all the children. She attempts to honour family members and their everyday labour in the kitchen and the restaurant in her “Sweet and Sour Memories” exhibit, which Chu developed as part of her Master of Fine Arts program. In her interview, Chu recalls racism that she experienced from other children in her elementary school where there were few Chinese-origin children. She was initially embarrassed to look different from other children but in her later school years, as non-white children numbers increased, she proudly embraced her language and culture.
Keywords: Artist; Child labour; Chinese restaurant; Hong Kong; Immigration; Kitchen work; Szechuen Cuisine; Waiter
Transcript: Download PDF
See also: Asian Communities in Alberta; Systemic Racism in Alberta; Women and Work in Alberta