Discovering Buddhist Art: Seeking The Sublime - Asian Art From SAM's Permanent Collection
date:Saturday, October 11, 2008 time:10:00 AM to 5:00 PM venue:Seattle Asian Art Museum address:1400 East Prospect Street Seattle, WA 98112 View map from:Seattle Asian Art Museum
The exhibition Discovering Buddhist Art Seeking the Sublime has returned to
the Seattle Asian Art Museum, installed in new rooms and made more comprehensive
by the inclusion of Chinese works, allowing visitors a greater understanding of
Asian Buddhist art.
Featured are approximately 90 pieces of sculpture, painting, ritual implements
and textiles from India, China, Tibet, Korea, Thailand and Japan. They
illustrate the spectacular development of Buddhist arts and trace the influence
of indigenous artistic styles and materials over 2,200 years. Intended for a
wide audience, Discovering Buddhist Art is more than an introduction. It has
been designed to evoke new views and stimulate appreciation for the art and
material culture of one of the world's most widespread religions.
Buddhism began with the story of Siddhartha, the prince of the Shakya warrior
clan, born in the sixth century B.C. in northern India (present-day Nepal).
Realizing the inevitability of suffering in the human experience, the prince
left the palace to enter a life of spirituality. Fleeing the strict asceticism
of his day, he attained enlightenment through meditation and from then on was
known as the Buddha. From the monasteries of India, Buddhist beliefs and arts
flowed in several streams throughout Asia. Consequently, Buddhist imagery and
decoration, affected by available local materials, developed into many different
forms and styles.
Various Buddha sculptures, including two standing Buddhas one from China around
600 A.D., the other from eleventh-century Japan are on display in the first
gallery of the exhibition. The second gallery includes a rich variety of Buddha
and Bodhisattva images along with a pantheon of related beings, illustrating the
breadth and depth of Buddhist artistic creativity. The final gallery of this
exhibition features an installation suggesting a ritual space, replete with an
Amida (Buddha of Infinite Light), two Bodhisattva, four guardian kings and
temple ornaments produced from the eleventh to the eighteenth century in Japan.
This unique installation serves as an excellent introduction to Buddhist art
while simultaneously evoking fresh views and concerns of Asian aesthetics.
Curated by Yukiko Shirahara, John A. McCone Foundation Curator of Asian Art,
Discovering Buddhist Art is part of the reinstallation of the Japanese galleries
at the Seattle Asian Art Museum.
The reinstallation of the collection has been supported by the Bright China
Foundation Endowment for Asian Art in honor of Peter and Doris Drucker, with
additional support provided by contributors to the Annual Fund.
Hours:
Tuesday – Sunday: 10 am. – 5 pm.
Thursday: 10 am. – 9 pm.
Monday: closed
Tickets: Suggested Fees
$5 adults
$3 students with ID, seniors 62 and over and youth 13-17
Free for children 12 and under
Free for SAM members
Date: On-Going
Location: Seattle Asian Art Museum Tateuchi Galleries.
