L-R: Landscapes of the Four Seasons: Spring and Summer, Hishikawa Sori, Japan, late 18th–early 19th c., color, ink, and gold on paper, National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution, Freer Collection, Gift of Charles Lang Freer, F1906.233; Ōsumi Yukie (b. 1945), Wave Crests (Namiho), Japan, Heisei era, 2008, hammered silver with nunomezõgan (textile imprint inlay) in lead and gold, National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution, Bequest of Shirley Z. Johnson, S2022.8.32a–d; Seated Ganesha, India, Karnataka state, Halebid, 12th–13th c., chloritic schist, National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution, Arthur M. Sackler Collection, Gift of Arthur M. Sackler, S1987.960
Take advantage of these long summer days with a trip to our nation’s capital and join the many educational events at the National Museum of Asian Art, including in person focus tours on Tibetan shrines, Japanese metalwork, objects of Hindu and Buddhist traditions and ghostly woodblock prints. Or if you can’t make it in person, then join them online for weekly meditation sessions!
IN-FOCUS TOURS:
Tibetan Shrine Room
Thursdays, Aug 15, 22, 29
2:00-2:20 pm & 2:45-3:05 pm (EDT)
Meet in the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery 26
Immerse yourself in the contemplative ambiance of the Tibetan Buddhist Shrine Room with a twenty-minute docent-led talk. The Tibetan Buddhist Shrine Room contains more than two hundred objects, including bronzes, paintings, silk hangings, and carpets, that were created in Tibet, China, and Mongolia between the thirteenth and early twentieth centuries.
Striking Objects: Contemporary Japanese Metalwork
Fridays, Aug 16, 23, 30
2:00-2:20 pm & 2:45-3:05 pm (EDT)
Meet in the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery 22
Closely examine a few Japanese masterpieces of hammered metalwork during a twenty-minute tour led by our docents. Learn how metalwork artists skillfully combine tradition with creativity and innovation, and get a taste of the largest collection of contemporary Japanese metalworks in the United States.
The Art of Knowing in South Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Himalayas
Saturdays, Aug 17, 24, 31
2:00-2:20 pm & 2:45-3:05 pm (EDT)
Meet in the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery 22
Take a closer look at objects, such as stone sculptures, gilt bronzes, and painted manuscripts, that highlight Hindu and Buddhist traditions. In this twenty-minute tour, our docents will help you consider the critical role visual culture played in these traditions from the ninth to the twentieth century. Hear stories about deities, from Ganesha, the god of beginnings, to goddesses who personify wisdom.
Staging Supernatural: Ghosts and the Theater in Japanese Prints
Sundays, Aug 18 & 25
2:00-2:20 pm & 2:45-3:05 pm (EDT)
Meet in the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery 25
Slowly and thoughtfully view a few ghostly Japanese woodblock prints in this twenty-minute tour with our docents. Through the lens of Japanese traditional theater, this exhibition examines vibrant prints and illustrated books from Japan spanning the seventeenth through early twentieth centuries.
To learn more about these tours and more, click here.
ONLINE EVENT:
Meditation and Mindfulness
Tuesdays & Fridays, Aug 16, 20, 23, 27, 30
12:00-12:45 pm (EDT)
Meditation helps us build a relationship to a place of inner quietude. Whether you’re a beginner or a skilled practitioner, join us for free online meditation sessions each week led by DC-based meditation teachers on Tuesdays and Fridays. Friday sessions include inspiration from art in the museum collections as well as appearances by special guest teachers and artists. All are welcome! No previous experience is required. Meet our meditation teachers: Aparna Sadananda and Philip Bender.
To register via Zoom, click here.