Asia Society Southern California · Annual Gala
Asia Society Southern California's 2022 Annual Gala — Sunday, May 22 at the Skirball Cultural Center — marked the chapter's first in-person gathering after two years of virtual celebrations. The night honored leaders across business, sport, technology and women's empowerment, all working to cultivate cross-cultural understanding between the United States and Asia.
- Date
- Sunday, May 22, 2022
- Venue
- Skirball Cultural Center · Los Angeles
- Format
- First in-person edition post-pandemic
- Mission
- Cross-cultural understanding · US ↔ Asia
The 2022 Asia Society Southern California Annual Gala marked the event's return to an in-person gathering after two years of virtual galas. The celebration was an evening under the stars at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles, as guests enjoyed performances, honoree presentations, and a chance to reconnect with old friends.
The evening began with the presentation of the "Sports Visionary" honor to two-time Olympic gold medalist Chloe Kim. Actor Olivia Cheng of HBO's Warrior delivered a heartfelt recollection of witnessing Kim excel in winter sports, an area in which she never saw Asian faces represented while growing up in Canada — and praised Kim's advocacy for mental health and the AAPI community.
Kim's recognition was followed by a surprise honor for actor Kara Wang, the returning emcee of the gala. Everything Everywhere All At Once actor Stephanie Hsu presented Wang with the first-ever "ASSC MVP" award. In her improvised speech, Wang reflected on the honor of working with ASSC at its biannual gatherings of "game changers."
“After two years of virtual celebrations, gather with us in person once again for a festive evening honoring leaders across a variety of fields.”
To present Olympian Eileen Gu with the "Global Ambassador" award, Gene T. Sykes — a member of the LA28 board of directors — spoke to how Gu embodies the Olympic values. In her acceptance speech, Gu contemplated the meaning of being a "Global Ambassador" and her gratitude at being able to use freeskiing as a platform to unite cultures.
Award-winning actor Awkwafina then introduced the cast and crew of Pachinko as the night's "Cultural Visionaries," continuing ASSC's tradition of recognizing Asian-led film and television productions. Pachinko showrunner Soo Hugh accepted on behalf of the team alongside Soji Arai, Minha Kim and Jin Ha — speaking to the remarkable journey the series made from page to screen.
The night closed with the presentation of the "Asian Women Empowered Visionary" award to Stella Li, president of BYD North America, in a fireside chat with journalist Lisa Ling.
