Dawat Yan Banquet

Come take part in the Dawat Yan Banquet hosted by this winter’s AGO X RBC Artists-in-Residence, Eric Chengyang and Mariam Magsi. Responding to the theme of Friendship Near and Far, the duo brought to life an immersive digital experience that gathers communities in one place to explore and ignite our five senses. 

The name of the project comes from Dawat (دعوت) and Yan (宴), which imply “banquet” in Urdu and Chinese respectively. From February to April of this year, Chengyang and Magsi spent their residency with the AGO putting together a virtual gathering that explores the intersections of food, art and cultural history, from perspectives of Asian hospitality. Chengyang draws from their Chinese-Canadian roots, while Magsi looks inwards at her Pakistani-Canadian roots. Working with community members, mentors and four guest artists, Amin Alsaden, Karina Iskandarsjah, Niloufar Salimi and Abdullah Qureshi, the pair examines the elements of a celebratory banquet through the creation of sensory experiences that overcome digital limitations.

Watch this timelapse to see how Dawat Yan Banquet is built. Keep your eyes peeled on this digital banquet to watch it grow even further in the coming months and to join in the celebration.

A time-lapse video capturing the live, process-based creation of the Dawat Yan Banquet from February to April , 2022. The Dawat Yan Banquet is an art and cultural gathering by Eric Chengyang and Mariam Magsi, with Amin Alsaden, Karina Iskandarsjah, Niloufar Salimi and Abdullah Qureshi, supported by AGO X RBC Artist-in-Residence Program.

“We have visualized the duration of our residency as a process-based, live preparation of the Dawat Yan Banquet,” said Eric Chengyang. “This time-lapse captures the intermediate process in the passing of real time, from a state of absence to the gradual completion. This evolving nature of our virtual project mirrors the reality of a physical banquet: the concept of gathering and parting is relative to each other, as highlighted in the old Chinese proverb below.” 

From Stories to Enlighten the World (喻世明言) by Feng, Meng-long (冯梦龙):
“In our earthly world, there is no such a banquet that doesn’t end with parting (天下无有不散筵席)”

“Traditionally, a banquet consists of many components filled by the hardworking hands of people. From ornamentation and entertainment, to the preparation of refreshments, to greeting people at the entrance, banquets would not be possible without labour, and the labour that goes into the formation of a banquet is usually invisible, and seamless,” explains Mariam Magsi. “With regards to the Dawat Yan Banquet time-lapse video, not only is the invisible labour made visible, but the sophisticated technique that has gone into the making of the virtual banquet, is also shared with utmost transparency, echoing the process-based nature of the Dawat Yan Project.”

For research and progress stories on the project, visit the artists’ project blog. To read the artists’ bios, visit their project profile here. 

Looking to learn more? The banquet culminates with a live gathering of the artists on Tuesday, April 26 at 5 pm. Join the team behind the Dawat Yan Banquet for a conversation about the work they have created and developed during their digital residency at the AGO this year. Free via Zoom. To register, visit https://ago.ca/events/ago-x-rbc-artists-residence-conversation-mariam-magsi-and-eric-chengyang.