The San Diego Chinese Historical Museum (SDCHM) unveiled on Thursday a new exhibit, "The Life & Deeds of Dr. Shih-Liang Chien", providing a rare opportunity to view heirlooms and family precepts of a well-respected Chinese family, that has expanded to San Diego, California.
This exhibit is on view in Downtown San Diego at SDCHM's Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Building from Thursday to April 8. It provides a rare glimpse into as far as six generations of renowned scientist Shih-Liang Chien's family.
"We are delighted to bring this rare bit of history to share with San Diegans, as it's the only exhibit of its kind and explores family precepts, family portraits and family values," Lilly Cheng, Director of the Confucius Institute at San Diego State University and former Board Chair of SDCHM, was quoted as saying in a news release.
The exhibit pays special attention to Chien and his son, Dr. Shu Chien, who are both highly honored for their scientific achievements.
Chien, born in 1908 in China's Zhejiang province and died in 1983, served in many prestigious and scholarly positions during his life as a notable Chinese chemist and educator. And Shu Chien is a local San Diegan, serving as the President of the Institute of Engineering in Medicine at University of California, San Diego (UCSD).
Shu Chien is an eminent Chinese-American physiologist and engineer. He received the highest honor in his industry, the U.S. National Medal of Science from President Obama in 2011 for "pioneering work in cardiovascular physiology and bioengineering."
The exhibit provides an opportunity to view exclusive family artifacts, photographs and rare collections of family precepts in both English and Chinese.
According to the museum, visitors will also have a chance to examine an entire collection of Shih-Liang Chien and his son's books and manuscripts on display.