ASIA SOCIETY MUSEUM 725 Park Avenue New York, New York 10021-5088 tel: (212) 517-NEWS, 517-ASIA; fax: (212) 517-8315 internet: www.asiasociety.org
		•Sacred Gold of Gods and Kings in Ancient Southeast Asia March - June 2002
			The exhibit presents more than 70 sets of royal adornments spanning the 7th to the 14th century, including examples from the kingdoms of Java, the Srivijaya Empire and Eastern Sumatra, the Khmer Empire, and the Champa Kingdom of Vietnam. Comparisons between the motifs of stone carving in temple architecture and the ornaments reveal a close relationship between the adornment of the sacred building and the sacred personage. Sculptures and photomurals of temple architecture in adjacent spaces will allow the visitor to explore these rich and suggestive connections.
		•Through Afghan Eyes: A Culture in Conflict, 1987-1992 March 19 - September 15, 2002
			The exhibit displays photography and videos documenting the Soviet war and the collapse of civil society in Afghanistan. These images are the work of Afghan photographers and cameramen, providing a critical perspective on the circumstances preceding the rise of the Taliban in Afghanistan. Also presented are photos and videos depicting daily life in Afghanistan against the backdrop of the Soviet occupation. The show is organized thematically, reflecting values indigenous to Afghan society: zendagi (daily life), watan (homeland), nang (honor), iman (belief). Still photographs, video loops and wall texts offer the visitor a rare opportunity to see beyond the combat bulletins and stereotypes of daily newspaper coverage.
		•The Crossing: Living, Dying, and Transformation in Banaras Summer 2002
			This multi-media exhibit explores Indian concepts of human existence as experienced through a virtual pilgrimage to Banaras, one of the world's most sacred cities situated on the banks of the Ganges River. The exhibit will be divided into sections that literally or metaphorically evoke the rituals and spiritual purification undergone by a pilgrim. These will include different theaters of activity such as the ghats or stone steps leading down to the river, where cremation rituals take place daily. Other sections will explore in a more metaphysical way such themes as the nature of the body, the cycle of life and death, and transformation of states through a complex menu of interactive multimedia and traditional art forms. One of the features will be the marrying of cutting-edge technology with traditional artistic media. Computer screens will be housed within religious symbols such as linga, and the computer mouse, for instance, will be replaced by a variety of smart-touch interfaces such as physical icons, body accessories, and jewelry activated by gestures and motions quite different from those traditionally used to interface with a computer.
		•Hunt for Paradise: Court Arts of Safavid Iran 1501-1576 October 9, 2002 - January 5, 2003
			Details in forthcoming issues.
		•Permanent Collection
			In 1979, Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd granted the Asia Society a collection of nearly three hundred works, which they had acquired over twenty-five years of exploring Asia and Asian art. This collection of masterworks from South, Southeast Asia, and East Asia, dating from 2000 B.C. to the 19th century, in various media--bronzes, paintings, ceramics, sculpture--reflects the great achievements and wide diversity of Asian arts and cultures. The Asia Society now selectively adds objects to this core collection that are of comparable rarity, beauty, and interest.
		•Contemporary Art Commissions Ongoing
			These art commissions reflect the institution's intention to make the study and presentation of 20th- and 21st-century art an integral part of its artistic mandate. The artists selected for the inaugural phase of the art commissions project include: Heri Dono, Yong Soon Min, Vong Phaophanit, Navin Rawanchaikul, Nilima Sheikh, Shahzia Sikander, Sarah Sze, Xu Bing, and Xu Guodong.
	Return to article selection page