Mythical Creatures: The Stories We Carry

East West Bank Galleries

Feb. 14 – Sept. 6, 2026

A major exhibition that transforms USC Pacific Asia Museum into an immersive journey through myth and the immigrant story, Mythical Creatures: The Stories We Carry is sweeping in scale and deeply personal in tone, its narrative written in verse in a voice evocative of a wise uncle to a loved one. The exhibition draws approximately 100 objects from USC PAM’s significant collection—which spans more than 5,000 years and
includes art from East Asia, South and Southeast Asia, the Himalayas, and the Pacific Islands and their diasporas— blending them with new and interactive media technology and works by 24 contemporary artists , most commissioned for the exhibition. The result is an interdisciplinary experience in which visitors engage with the past through creative activations of pan-Asian mythology that ignite feeling and memory.

In Mythical Creatures, visitors move through various creative environments, including a shadowy night crossing filled with demons, a homey rendition of an immigrant’s first apartment, and a gilded room spotlighting a gold Jin Chan frog that dispenses coins. Dragons, cranes, guardian spirits, and shapeshifters appear throughout as metaphors for internal states and intergenerational legacies.

New technologies power immersive experiences throughout the galleries, from a wraparound video installation in a reconstructed airplane cabin to an AI video interaction that allows visitors to assume the role of an immigrant.

While the exhibition is an active place of connection where you’re invited to find yourself within the story, it is also deeply rooted in historical material and scholarly research, featuring QR codes leading to a custom app, AI Curator allows deep dives into specific objects.

Conceived by Los Angeles–based Korean American artist and muralist Dave Young Kim, the museum-wide installation—itself a work of immersive art—marks a bold shift in how USC PAM’s historical collections can be activated to tell emotionally resonant, present-day stories.

About the Curator and Artistic Director

Dave Young Kim is a Los Angeles–based Korean American artist and muralist whose work reflects his interest in cultural memory, migration, and the idea of home. Working across public art and studio practice, he often draws on Korean visual traditions and his family’s history while partnering with local communities to shape murals that speak to their lived experiences. Kim earned his BFA from UC Davis and pursued graduate study in studio art at Mills College. His projects and exhibitions span institutions such as USC Pacific Asia Museum (USC PAM); the Asian Art Museum, San Francisco; Berkeley Art Center; and the Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery. Recent highlights include A Momentous Moment in Time of Passage and Landing, 2024, a monumental mural outside of USC PAM and a large-scale mural in Gusan, Korea. His work has been recognized through awards and grants including the Asian Pacific American Heritage Award, the Abbey Mural Prize, support from the California Arts Council, and his leadership in co-founding the Korean American Artist Collective.

About AI Curator Digital Gallery Guide

Developed through a collaboration between USC PAM and Clioai Inc., an AI startup co- founded by two USC alumni, AI Curator was developed to surpass traditional digital gallery guides, by enabling open-ended dialogue. Visitors may ask questions on topics ranging from iconography and symbolism to historical context and cross-cultural comparisons, receiving responses grounded in curatorial research. The experience is
designed to complement—not replace—human curatorial voices, extending their reach and making expert knowledge more accessible to diverse audiences. Free to use; accessible on mobile devices; available in English and Mandarin. Explore the AI Curator Digital Gallery Guide at https://usc.pam.clioai.art/exhibitions/mythical-creatures/en/app

Mythical Creatures is organized by the USC Pacific Asia Museum and curated by Dave Kim. Major support is provided by Mei-Lee Ney. Additional support is provided by the Perenchio Foundation, the McClay Family Trust, Margaret Leong Checca, and Zhang Financial.

Special Thanks to Lead Exhibition Sponsor:  East West Bank