Honolulu Academy of Arts Cecilia Doo O Japan, Designed Numerous Projects Throughout Hawai‘I Barney A
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8 0 0 2 Y R A U R B E F / Y R A CalendarNews U HONOLULU ACADEMY OF ARTS N A J the dragon’s gift: the sacred arts of bhutan HonoluluAcademyofArts Continuing Exhibitions Board of Trustees Lynne Johnson, Chairman Linda Ahlers Charman J. Akina Burta Atherton Hawaiian Modern: the Architecture of Dawn Aull Frank Boas Vladimir Ossipoff Henry B. Clark, Jr. HENRY R. LUCE GALLERY THROUGH JANUARY 27 Samuel A. Cooke Judy Dawson ver his six-decade career, Vladimir Ossipoff I Diane Dods (1907–1998), who was Russian-born and raised in Honolulu Academy of Arts Cecilia Doo O Japan, designed numerous projects throughout Hawai‘i Barney A. Ebsworth Dear Friends, Peggy Eu including houses, schools, churches, private clubs, and most Mark Fukunaga notably the 1970s modernization of the Honolulu International On February 26, 2008, after five years of planning, The Dragon’s Gift: The Sacred Arts of Helen Gary Airport. Bhutan, will open to the public. This extraordinary exhibition comprises over 100 works of Stephanie Hee sacred Buddhist art from Bhutan, including thangka paintings, gilt bronze sculptures, ritual Ron Higgins Passion for Form: Selections of Southeast objects, and textiles. These works are borrowed from Buddhist temples and monasteries Michael Horikawa throughout the remote Himalayan kingdom, and from the National Museum in Paro. The Claire Johnson Asian Art from the MacLean Collection majority of these treasures have never before been seen outside of Bhutan. Akemi Kurokawa TEXTILE GALLERY THROUGH JANUARY 6 Clarence Lee From its start, The Dragon’s Gift has been a remarkable undertaking, involving an army of Warren K.K. Luke assion for Form is the first public exhibition of the Stephen Little scholars, officials, monks, cultural experts, and donors. In Honolulu, every department within Richard Mamiya the Academy has been involved with exhibition’s planning and execution. The Dragon’s Gift is Watters O. Martin, Jr. Southeast Asian treasures in the MacLean Collection. The P fifty-three objects in the exhibition include early pottery the most ambitious exhibition ever organized by the museum. In addition to its beautiful Margaret Oda works of art, the project includes a multi-year program of art conservation and sacred dance Michael O’Neill vessels: bronze drums and bells as well as sculpture, utensils, preservation, which together comprise the Academy’s gift to Bhutan. Wesley T. Park and jewelry, and stone sculpture and architectural fragments. James F. Pierce The Academy’s primary mission is education Duane Preble Matteo Sandonà and Hawai‘i: through the vehicle of works of art. I am enor- Jean E. Rolles mously grateful for the stable platform the Academy Yoshiharu Satoh A Capital Ambition provides for taking on creative projects as those Charles A. Sted Charles Stockholm DOMINIS & DAMON HOLT GALLERY THROUGH FEBRUARY 24 represented by exhibitions like The Dragon’s Gift. Susan Tompkins atteo Sandonà and Hawai‘i: A Capital Ambition is Projects of this magnitude cannot be undertaken Thurston Twigg-Smith the first significant exhibition of work by Matteo without the moral and financial support of many Indru Watumull individuals and foundations. I am deeply grateful to Charles R. Wichman M Sandonà (1881–1964) in more than fifty years. Betty Wo the Academy’s Board of Trustees for its support of the exhibition’s vision, namely to make the remark- Emeritus Trustees Four Generations of Japanese Woodblock ably intact culture and art of a remote Himalayan Phoebe Cowles Prints from Philip H. Roach, Jr. kingdom accessible to the American public. Alice Guild Photo © 2008 Honolulu Academy of Arts Keiji Kawakami GALLERY 14 THROUGH JANUARY 13 As a visionary project, The Dragon’s Gift has (left to right), Gerard Houghton, Terese Bartholomew, T. Clifford Melim, Jr. his exhibition will explore the work of four generations enormous significance, as the Academy increasingly Joseph Houseal, Khenpo Phuntsho Tashi, Stephen Little, Lila Morgan projects its identity and programs beyond Hawai‘i’s Reda Sobky, Dorji Namgyel, and Eddie Jose, at the Joanna Lau Sullivan of artists who guided the Japanese woodblock print tradi- shores. As a culturally-groundbreaking exhibition, it National Museum of Bhutan, Paro, 2004. Edward D. Sultan, Jr. T tion from its ukiyo-e “floating world” roots to a new, follows in the path of such shows as Japan and Joanne V. Trotter modern identity in the 20th century. Paris: Impressionism, Postimpressionism, and the Modern Era (2004), the first show on the Thelma Zen history of collecting French Impressionism in Japan ever held in the West, and Life in the Stephen Little, Director Prelude to the Print Pacific of the 1700s (2006), which brought over 300 artifacts collected on Captain James ----------- Cook’s second and third voyages back to the Pacific for the first time since 1779. I am proud MICHENER GALLERY THROUGH JANUARY 20 of the fact that like Life in the Pacific of the 1700s, The Dragon’s Gift will travel to other About the cover: his year, the Academy is proud to organize the sixth venues, including New York City’s Rubin Museum of Art (Autumn 2008) and the Asian Art Buddha Vajrasattva Museum of San Francisco (Spring 2009). 16th century annual exhibition highlighting Japanese woodblock prints Dongkarla Kunzang Choling, Paro T conserved with the support of the Robert F. Lange Finally, the Academy is deeply grateful to the Robert H.N. Ho Family Foundation, whose lead Sculpture Foundation. support made this exhibition possible, and the many other generous donors without whose PA 12.01 support The Dragon’s Gift would not have been realized. ----------- Away from the “Dusty World” Stephen Little Calendar News vol. 80, no. 1, is published six times Images of Retirement in Chinese Art a year as a benefit for museum members by SULLIVAN GALLERY THROUGH MARCH 16 Honolulu Academy of Arts: 900 South Beretania Street, Honolulu, Hawai‘i 96814 mong the rarities in the Academy’s collection are three Editor: Milt Chun copper engravings, made in China toward the end of the Director Staff Photographer: Shuzo Uemoto A eighteenth century. This exhibition contrasts the engrav- Design & Production: Steven Ledbetter Design & Associates, Inc. Printing & Mailing: Edward Enterprises, Inc. ings against paintings on the theme of the scholar in retirement ©2008 Honolulu Academy of Arts, All rights reserved. in 18th and 19th century paintings. Photograph by Tibor Franyo, © 2001 Honolulu Academy of Arts 2 Calendar News - January/February 2008 3 On Exhibit The Dragon’s Gift: The Sacre d Arts of Bhutan GALLERIES 27 & 28 FEBRUARY 26 – MAY 23 Padmasambhava (also known as Guru Rinpoche, wealth, Bhutan stands apart from the rest of the ends with a major 8th century, who first brought Tantric Buddhism world, and in so doing has an important global work of contempo - Special opening for HAA Members February 24th. to Bhutan), Pema Lingpa (145 0–1521, a famous message in an age of increasing materialism. rary art: a photo- o most outsiders, Bhutan is a land of “Treasure Revealer”), Drukpa Kunley As part of the exhibition project, the Academy based installation of mystery. Known in Dzongkha, the official (145 5–1529, the “Divine Madman”), and has made two significant gifts to Bhutan. The first the dancers of the T language of Bhutan, as Druk Yul ( Land of Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyel (159 4–1651, the has involved conservation of works of art, and the Pema Lingpa Cham the Thunder Dragon ), Bhutan is situated in the unifier of Bhutan), and such key religious figures second has involved preservation of Bhutan’s rare Lineage in Bhutan, Himalayas, east of Nepal and west of Myanmar as Buddhas, bodhisattvas (including the powerful sacred dance ( Cham ) traditions. created by Herbert (Burma), between Tibet and the Indian state of female deities Tara and Prajnaparamita), and Under the direction of Ephraim (Eddie) Jose, Migdoll, who has Assam. On its northern border, Bhutan is flanked wrathful deities (including Mahakala and the Academy’s Conservator of Asian Paintings, and been resident artist w e Yamantaka). Mark Fenn, Objects Conservator at the Asian Art at the Joffrey Ballet m o by some of the highest mountains in the world. l o h t r a Organized by the Honolulu Academy of Arts in Museum of San Francisco, the Academy has for twenty-nine B The Dragon’s Gift: The Sacred Arts of Bhutan e c u r B conjunction with the Department of Culture, a conserved all the works in the exhibition. In years. 6 0 is a major exhibition that focuses on the 0 2 © o branch of the Ministry of Home and Cultural addition, over a three-year period, Jose and Fenn The exhibition is t Himalayan kingdom’s Buddhist art and culture. o h The exhibition explores Bhutan’s cosmology and Affairs of the Royal Government of Bhutan, the have trained a group of forty Bhutanese monks accompanied by a P worldview through the window of its sacred visual exhibition coincides with the end of the lunar year and other individuals responsible for the care of special introductory video, directed by Amy (left) arts and ritual dance (Cham), using Buddhism marking the one hundredth anniversary of the cultural properties in the newest and most effi - Christenson, an Emmy award-winning producer Bodhisattva Manjushri, 18th century Royal Wangchuck cient methods for storing and conserving works of for the Public Broadcasting System station WTTW Ink and mineral colors on cotton and the local pre- Height: 201 x Width: 100 cm Buddhist religion Dynasty. The exhibi - ancient art. in Chicago. Trashigang Gönpa, Thimphu (which includes tion’s timing is signif - In a major innovation, the exhibition explores It is rare that any museum has the opportunity (Cat. no. 20) elements of animism icant as it opens in the ancient ritual Buddhist dance and movement to create an exhibition that documents and explores the arts of a living culture as well (right) and shamanism), as 2008, during which tradition known as Cham, a form of danced yoga.