Liu Dan 劉丹, Scholar’s Rock, 1993, ink on paper; Purchase through the generosity of Alan J. and Suzanne W. Dworsky and through the Ernest B. and Helen Pratt Dane Fund for Asian Art, 2003.83. © 1993 Liu Dan
East Asian Art Gallery Reinstallation
Through December 1, 2024
Gallery 2600
One of the highlights in our recently reinstalled East Asian Art Gallery is this ink on paper Scholar’s Rock by Liu Dan. For at least 2,000 years, Chinese artists and scholars have collected unusually shaped stones, commonly known as “scholars’ rocks,” to display in their studios and gardens, regarding them as microcosmic landscapes to be explored in the mind’s eye. Their bizarre, sprawling, and pierced forms surpass the limitations of the physical world. Rendered on an almost planetary scale, this work is part of a larger installation examining the many ways in which artists in East Asia have manipulated scale to change the viewer’s perception of a subject.
Elephant Capture, India, Mughal period, early 17th century. Ink, opaque watercolor, and gold on paper. 15 1/16 x 10 3/4 in. (38.2 x 27.3 cm). Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Friends of the Fogg Art Museum Fund, 1951.127.1. © President and Fellows of Harvard College; courtesy of the Harvard Art Museums. On display in Water Stories.
Water Stories
October 18, 2023 – Ongoing
Gallery 2590, South Asian Art and Gallery 2550, Art from Islamic Lands
Water is central to human existence everywhere. In South Asia, where the tropical and sub-tropical climate patterns with annual monsoons determine the level of access to water, water management structures and vessels that control and contain water play a vital role in daily lives. Additional paintings draw attention to the various appearances, uses, and significance of water in Ottoman Times in Türkiye (Turkey) and the Levant. Similar water-themed paintings from Muslim communities in Iran, Egypt, and China are also on display.
Installation view of Late Imperial Monochromes. Photo: © President and Fellows of Harvard College; courtesy of the Harvard Art Museums.
Late Imperial Monochromes
Ongoing
Gallery 2710, North Arcade
In China’s Ming (1368–1644) and Qing (1644–1911) dynasties, a taste emerged for vivid monochrome wares. Imperial kilns left ceramic bodies undecorated or subtly incised, allowing a single bold color to dominate. The rainbow of hues seen in this presentation of thirteen works was achieved through a combination of low-fired enamels and high-fired glazes made with iron, copper, cobalt, and manganese oxide colorants.
To learn more about all these exhibitions, click here.
RECENTLY CLOSED EXHIBITION
Future Minded: New Works in the Collection
March 1 – July 21, 2024
Special Exhibitions Gallery (Level 3)
Future Minded highlights a selection of works acquired in recent years that exemplify the Harvard Art Museums’ collecting vision and strategies. Nearly all are on display for the first time.
The museums are committed to acquiring art that expands the range of artists and cultures represented in the collections; that moves museum practice toward more nuanced understanding of both histories and contemporary issues; and that pushes boundaries and embraces experimentation. Many of the works on view are by living artists, an area of focused growth for the museums.
Staged across two adjacent galleries, the exhibition presents a range of drawings, photographs, prints, paintings, and sculptures spanning centuries and continents. The works are by roughly 30 artists, including Jean (Hans) Arp, Edward Mitchell Bannister, Willie Cole, Pietro Damini, Svenja Deininger, Jeffrey Gibson, Baldwin Lee, Ana Mendieta, Lucia Moholy, Toyin Ojih Odutola, Noriko Saitō, Melissa Shook, Jane Yang-D’Haene, and many others.
Funding for Future Minded: New Works in the Collection is provided by the Melvin R. Seiden and Janine Luke Fund for Publications and Exhibitions. Related programming is supported by the M. Victor Leventritt Lecture Series Endowment Fund. Modern and contemporary art programs at the Harvard Art Museums are made possible in part by generous support from the Emily Rauh Pulitzer and Joseph Pulitzer, Jr., Fund for Modern and Contemporary Art. Acquisition of each work in our collection is made possible thanks to our supporters, past and present.
