Madame Gandhi is known for her uplifting, percussive electronic music and positive message about gender liberation and personal power. “Going deep, bravely into the pain” is how Madame Gandhi describes Vibrations, her third studio album—and it could easily double as a subtitle for it. For several years prior to the pandemic, the overachieving artist and public speaker had spent her life traveling on and off. (Here’s a sampling: Touring Oprah and MIA alike; leading a Ted Talk; writing a song for Hillary Clinton’s streaming series, Gutsy.) “While that time was beautiful, it distracted me from deeper emotional work that I didn’t know I had to do. Sometimes when we’re in that pain,” Gandhi says, “we forget that getting past it is possible. After all, pain are the pulsations that remind us we’re alive.

To commemorate Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, join the National Museum of Asian Art’s annual IlluminAsia Festival. From May 10–12 celebrate, convene, learn, reflect, and foster connections through Asian arts and cultures!

IlluminAsia will create dialogue around and shed light on often-overlooked issues of mental health and well-being in the Asian, Asian American, and diasporic community. Programs will draw on art and culture resources, mindfulness practices, and the museum’s role as a space of gathering, learning, healing, and contemplation.

Bank of America is the Founding Sponsor of the Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art “IlluminAsia” Arts and Culture Festival.

IlluminAsia also received federal funding from the Asian Pacific American Initiatives Pool, administered by the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center.