Composite image of kids doing crafts with families, and traditional folk performance (Ellen Wallop and Delie M. Camins).
Family Day: Passport Through Asia!
Saturday, May, 30, 2026 from 1-4pm
$15 Members, $20 Nonmembers, $10 Children over 2 years of age
Join us for a special Family Day at Asia Society, where art, culture, and creativity come together for all ages. As part of our beloved Family Day series — and in celebration of Asia Society’s 70th anniversary — families are invited to explore hands-on arts and crafts inspired by Asian cultures throughout the building.
Children and caregivers can move from space to space, discovering creative activities that reflect the richness and diversity of Asia, from traditional techniques to contemporary interpretations. Along the way, families will learn, make, and celebrate together, honoring seven decades of Asia Society’s commitment to fostering cross-cultural understanding.
Get ready to embark on an unforgettable cross-continental adventure! Every young explorer will be issued an official Asia Society Passport, which serves as their personal guide through the vibrant cultures of Asia. As children visit each station, they can collect stamps and document their “travels,” making their cultural journey official!
To learn more and view all activities, click here.
Shiva as Vinadhara (Player of the Vina). India, Tamil Nadu; Chola period, about 970. Copper alloy. H. 27 3/4 in. (70.5 cm); W. 17 5/8 in. (44.8 cm); D. 6 1/2 in. (16.5 cm). Asia Society, New York: Gift of Hope Aldrich, 2024.1
Buddha and Shiva, Lotus and Dragon: Celebrating 70 Years of Asia Society and the Rockefeller Legacy
March 18, 2026 – January 3, 2027
Members-Only Opening: Tuesday, March 17, 5:30-8:45pm
Patrons-Only Preview: Tuesday, March 17, 5:30-6:30pm
In celebration of Asia Society’s 70th anniversary, Asia Society Museum presents Buddha and Shiva, Lotus and Dragon: Celebrating 70 Years of Asia Society and the Rockefeller Legacy.
Displaying seventy of the finest examples of Asian art in the United States drawn from Asia Society’s permanent collection, the exhibition showcases the extraordinary range of bronzes, ceramics, and metalwork thoughtfully assembled between the 1950s and the 1970s by John D. Rockefeller 3rd (1906-1978) and his wife Blanchette Hooker Rockefeller (1909-1992). John D. Rockefeller 3rd founded Asia Society in 1956 with the mission to promote greater knowledge of Asia in the United States; the bequest of the collection to Asia Society in 1979 underscores the Rockefellers’ conviction that an aesthetic encounter with great works of art promotes deep cross-cultural understanding.
With highlights including spectacular Buddhist and Hindu sculptures, and rare Chinese, Korean, and Japanese ceramics, Buddha and Shiva, Lotus and Dragon celebrates historic achievements in Asian art spanning more than two millennia. The exhibition foregrounds the transformative power of faith and the catalyzing potential of international trade in the creation of great works of art across Asia.
Buddha and Shiva, Lotus and Dragon presents a special opportunity for museum visitors to experience the unparalleled quality of the Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection at its home at Asia Society Museum in New York City.
To learn more, click here.
Krishna and Balarama in Pursuit of the Demon Shankashura. Circa 1690; India, Rajasthan, Bikaner. Gouache, gold, and silver on paper. H. 9 in. (23 cm); W. 5 1/5 in. (13.3 cm). Asia Society, New York: Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Acquisitions Fund, 2002.2
A Legacy Continued: Recent Acquisitions
March 18, 2026 – January 3, 2027
A Legacy Continued features recent acquisitions received from Sandra Ferry Rockefeller and Hope Aldrich in honor of their parents, John D. Rockefeller 3rd and Blanchette Hooker Rockefeller. These gifts were originally part of Mr. and Mrs. Rockefeller’s personal collection, and this display celebrates their homecoming. These pieces complement other works within the museum collection, some of which are included in this exhibition. Together, they offer greater opportunities for comparative studies among them.
Two Chola bronze statues of Hindu deities from Hope Aldrich—a Shiva and a Satyabhama—add to the already magnificent group of Indian Chola bronzes in the collection. From Sandra Ferry, two lovely gilt bronze Chinese Buddhist statues augment the museum’s existing Chinese Buddhist sculptures, while the addition of three Thai works furthers the collection’s strength in Southeast Asian sculpture. See Selected Works in the Exhibition to preview some of these important gifts.
To learn more, click here.
Blanchette Hooker Rockefeller and the Rockefeller Collection
March 18, 2026 – January 3, 2027
Born in New York City to an affluent family from Detroit who owned the Ferry-Morse Seed Company and Hooker Electrochemical Company, Blanchette Ferry Hooker (1909–1992) married John D. Rockefeller 3rd, the grandson of Standard Oil founder, John D. Rockefeller, in 1932. Blanchette shared many interests with her husband, including art and collecting. In 1949, she joined the Junior Council of the Museum of Modern Art and continued a lifelong involvement with the museum, serving as its president twice and as chair of the board.
In the early 1950s, after her husband was appointed to John Foster Dulles’ Peace Treaty Mission to Japan, she became fascinated by Asia. Blanchette shared her husband’s views that art could serve as a cultural bridge between Americans and Asians and, to gain a deeper understanding of Asian art, enrolled in Columbia University’s East Asian Institute from 1954 to 1956. Later, she wrote, “I always felt sorry for John because he was doing the collecting while I was the one having the fun of learning about it.” In the early 1960s, she and her husband began assembling a collection of Asian art that comprises the highest possible craftsmanship and artistry. Rather than a historical survey of the arts of Asia, the collection is one of masterpieces, one with an intentional focus on four principal cultures—Japanese, Chinese, Khmer, and Indian.
After JDR 3rd’s death in 1978, Blanchette remained active at Asia Society, serving on the Asia Society Gallery (now Asia Society Museum) Advisory Committee (1959–1991), and expanding the permanent collection through additional gifts, a selection of which are on display here in celebration of Asia Society’s 70th anniversary.
To learn more, click here.
Tromarama (collective est. 2006, Bandung, Indonesia: Febie Babyrose, Herbert Hans, Ruddy Hatumena). Unbelievable Beliefs, 2012. Indonesia. Single-channel stop-motion animation with sound; sound by Bintang Manira. Duration: 2 minutes, 57 seconds. Asia Society, New York: Gift of James Woods, 2014.8
Busy, Busy Towns: Moving Images of a Changing Asia
March 18, 2026 – January 3, 2027
This selection of works from the Asia Society Museum Collection explore how rapidly evolving cultural, political, and ecological issues have shaped urban landscapes across contemporary Asia, and in particular China, Indonesia, and Taiwan. The exhibition presents seven works featuring the artists Song Dong, Chen Shaoxiong, Tromarama, and Chen Chieh-jen. The innovative range of styles implemented to produce these moving images—through stop-motion animation of woodcuts, ink painting, or embroidery—among other methods, speaks to the creative depth and diversity of the region. The artists explore the dynamic energy of cities, whether fueled by consumerism and gentrification or by collapsing industries and environmental degradation. Actively reflecting on the regeneration of cityscapes and the subsequent impact on urban lives, these works initiate a renewed dialogue with the current exhibition, (Re)Generations: Rina Bannerjee, Bryon Kim, and Howardena Pindell amid the Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection.
To learn more, click here.
