A new exhibition at Wrightwood 659 in Chicago, “Martin Wong: Chinatown USA,” presents over 100 works by the late self-taught artist, including 11 never-before-exhibited paintings and the never-before-seen back side of a large canvas. The show focuses on Wong’s depictions of San Francisco’s and New York’s Chinatowns, featuring iconic imagery such as Bruce Lee, Peking opera performer Mei Lanfang, and the pagoda-style building at 241 Canal Street. It is the first monographic institutional show of Wong’s work in nearly a decade, complemented by a concurrent New York exhibition, “Martin Wong: Popeye,” at P.P.O.W. Gallery, which closed in June 2026.
The exhibition matters because it brings long-hidden works to light, including the monumental painting “Tai Ping Tien Kuo (Tai Ping Kuo)” (1982), which was unseen for nearly four decades and recently acquired by the Broad Museum after being offered at Art Basel Miami Beach for $1.6 million. The show also highlights Wong’s nuanced exploration of identity, heritage, and urban life, challenging stereotypes about Chinatown as a touristy, kitschy space. By displaying Wong’s brick-wall paintings on the actual brick walls of the Tadao Ando–designed building, the exhibition creates a resonant dialogue between art and architecture, deepening appreciation for an artist who heroized his Asian and Latino contemporaries.