elevating the work of East and Southeast Asian artists and makers in the UK: an interview with DontCallMeOriental

Don’t Call Me Oriental (DCMO) is a platform, shop and pop-up exhibition space that elevates the work of East and Southeat Asian (ESEA) artists and makers in the UK. Deputy editor-in-chief Michelle Moira Mei Ling Firth speaks to founder and director of DCMO, Mildred Cheng, who shares her experience thus far in creating DCMO. 

Mildred Cheng is an illustrator and creative, and the founder and director of DCMO. She begun DCMO as part of a collaboration with The Steam Room, an artisan dry-cleaning and lifestyle shop that incorporates Chinese values into its business. Together, DCMO and The Steam Room held a virtual and in-person Lunar New Year Exhibition and online shop showcasing the work of ESEA artists and makers for the Year of the Ox. 

[image description: the DCMO shop display. there is several white shelves full of objects such as bags, cards and Mildred's art work]

DCMO is one of many emerging online platforms beginning to bridge a gap in ESEA representation and community space in the UK. For Mildred, setting up DCMO both re-emphasised this gap and highlighted the enthusiasm of ESEA diaspora to build further community platforms. She told me: ‘When I first started DCMO, I got a lot of messages from people saying “thank you for creating this.” So many ESEA artists and makers themselves reached out to say “I didn’t know there were so many of us here!” – And, we’re only just scratching the surface! There’s so many more ESEA artists and makers out there.’ 

Going further, DCMO not only works to make space for ESEA artists and makers in the UK, where visibility and community space hasn’t always been afforded, but also, to celebrate ESEA artistic expression and work. For Mildred, the dual-reality of the marginalisation of ESEA people in the UK, and the cultural difficulties that come with being an ESEA creative, is what drives her work: ‘Traditionally, our families tend not to see the creative field as something you can do professionally. It’s viewed as acceptable as a hobby – you might take painting classes or a musical instrument, more likely – but it’s not often seen as a viable career. Alongside that, in the UK, the ESEA community is often neglected. The Asian art world in the UK and the Western hemisphere more broadly is often targeted towards rich white audiences. So all these factors combined make DCMO so important to me. I think it’s important that this community is built by ESEA artists, for the ESEA community.’ 

Setting up DCMO as an ESEA creative community has, as such, been immensely personally rewarding for Mildred. She’s felt the warmth of the community as people have reached out not only to extend thanks, but also to volunteer to help with DCMO: ‘People have reached out and helped me, for example in promoting DCMO on social media. And when I was trying to calculate my profits and expenses, I posted a story about how difficult it was – and someone made a spreadsheet for me! It’s kind of amazing how many people in the community have been willing to help and support me. All of that has been so rewarding, as well as just getting to meet so many people who are part of the same community is really nice.’ 

As for the future, Mildred hopes to continue to expand DCMO as a platform for ESEA artists and makers to share their work. She’s currently working on another pop-up exhibition for Buddhist New Year, and looking to apply for grants to enable her to keep running DCMO. Looking forward to post-pandemic times, she hopes DCMO can transition to being both an online and offline community, popping-up at existing Asian businesses, be it restaurants, super-markets, or shops – as a way to give back to the community and promote ESEA businesses: ‘These are my three core objectives for DCMO going forward: fostering community and supporting existing businesses; re-championing ESEA creativity and the creative world; and charity initiatives – both monetary and awareness fundraising for the community.’ 

[image description: the 'don't call me oriental' logo. the text is large and white on a red, circular background]

---

Don't Call Me Oriental is a platform, online shop and pop-up exhibition space elevating East and Southeast Asian artists and makers. Using creativity to bring awareness and raise money for causes we believe in. Founded by Mildred Cheng, a Hong Kong/Singaporean multi-disciplinary creative, programme producer and professional shit-talker. You can find DCMO on their website and instagram.