Asia Society Museum presents a selection of 15 masterworks from the Asia Society’s renowned Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection, depicting the “Eight Great Events” from the life of Siddhartha Gautama Buddha.
Works in the exhibition date from the second to eighteenth centuries and represent some of the finest examples of Buddhist art, drawn from the Asia Society’s Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection.
While the actual life events of the Buddha are not well documented, there are several legendary stories about significant moments in his life, which became codified in a visual language by around 100 AD. This exhibition is anchored by an illuminated manuscript from the great Indian Buddhist monastic learning center, Nalanda, depicting the “Eight Great Events” around which these legendary stories are centered.
Buddha, Sage of the Shakya Clan is curated by Laura Weinstein, John H. Foster Associate Curator, Pre-Modern Art, Asia Society and will be on view at Asia Society Museum in New York from June 13–August 27, 2023.
