A Curious Affair: The Fascination between East and West
June 17–September 3, 2006
The interaction of Asia and Europe has been one of the great processes of global history and culture. This exhibition takes a light-hearted look at the legacies of this interaction—and of the mutual fascination— between the two regions over the past five centuries.
A Curious Affair features more than 75 paintings, sculptures, furniture, ceramics, and other decorative arts. Included are artworks made in Great Britain, the United States, and France as well as in China, India, Japan, and other Asian countries. They are drawn from private Bay Area collections and the collection of the Asian Art Museum, and many have never before been exhibited publicly.
Image: European lady, 1795-1830. India. Miniature, colors on paper. Gift of George Hopper Fitch, B86D9.
Hidden Meanings
October 7, 2006–January 14, 2007
Symbolism abounds in the decorative arts of China, rendering clothing, personal adornment, and household objects rich with meaning. A gourd-shaped vase decorated with bats is more than just ornamental: it is a promising omen, as the gourd symbolizes fertility by virtue of its numerous seeds, and the imagery of bats implies the sentiment "blessings vast as the sky." By surrounding themselves with such symbols, many Chinese believed that wishes would be fulfilled. This exhibition unlocks the mysteries of these "hidden meanings” and offers a glimpse into the time-honored importance of auspicious symbolism in Chinese culture. Imperial porcelains and jades from the museum's acclaimed Avery Brundage Collection illustrate pictorial motifs that represent wishes for fertility, a harmonious marriage, wealth and prosperity, long life, and more.
Hidden Meanings: Symbolism in Porcelains and Jades of the Ming and Qing Dynasties was organized by the Asian Art Museum |
