Art of Asia Acquired by North American Museums, 2013–2014

This section is devoted to works of Asian art recently acquired by public collections in the United States and Canada. These works are reproduced to illustrate general trends of acquisition, as well as to present selected objects of outstanding interest. The dating, provenance, and descriptions are supplied by the owners. Arranged alphabetically by name of museum, this list includes the names of senior curators or staff members responsible for Asian collections.

Art Institute of Chicago

Chicago, Illinois

Dr. Janice Katz, Roger L. Weston Associate Curator of Japanese Art

Dr. Madhuvanti Ghose, Alsdorf Associate Curator of Indian, Southeast Asian, Himalayan and Islamic Art Elinor Pearlstein, Associate Curator of Chinese Art

1.

Bidri Water Vessel (Lota), South Asia (India, Deccan, Bidar or Hyderabad), ca. 1700–1750. Zinc alloy with sheet silver overlay, 19 × 16 cm. Art Institute of Chicago, 2013.79. Major Acquisition Centennial Fund.

2.

Horses in Stables, Japan, Genroku period (1688–1704), ca. 1688–1704. Pair of six-panel screens, ink, colors, and gold leaf on paper, 178 × 376 cm each. Art Institute of Chicago, 2014.2.1–2. Shinkokai Japanese Art Acquisition Fund; The Mary and Leigh Block Endowment Fund; Frederick & Natalie Gookin Fund; restricted gift of Roger L. Weston; Avery Brundage and Roger L. Weston funds.

3.

Tantric Female Buddha (Vajrayogini) Holding a Skull Cup (Kapala), Himalaya (Central Tibet), 18th century. Silver, gilt silver, and gilt copper alloy, 66.1 × 46.4 × 22.9 cm. Art Institute of Chicago, 2014.1041. Gift of Marilynn Alsdorf.

4.

Scholar’s Rock or Brushrest, China, Qing period, 18th century. Stone (probably lingbi), 21 × 27.5 cm. Art Institute of Chicago, 2014.633. Russell Tyson Fund and restricted gift of an anonymous donor.

Asia Society

New York, New York

Michelle Yun, Senior Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art

5.

Tabaimo (Japan, b. 1975), haunted house, 2003. Single-channel video installation with sound projected on a semi-circular wall with turntable cabinet, duration: 5 minutes; loop. Asia Society, 2014.005.

Asian Art Museum of San Francisco

San Francisco, California

Pedro Moura Carvalho, Deputy Director, Art & Programs

Laura Allen, Curator of Japanese Art

6.

Yang Yongliang (China, b. 1980), still from The Night of Perpetual Day, edition 3 of 7, 2013. HD video, 4 channel with soundtrack, 8 minutes 32 seconds. Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, 2014.14. Acquisition made possible by Gorretti and Lawrence Lui, with additional funding from Richard Beleson.

© Yang Yongliang.

7.

Mandala of the Buddhas Embodying the Capacities of the Victorious Ushnisha (Sonshō mandala), Japan, ca. 1300–1400. Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, image 78.7 × 39.1 cm, overall 163.8 × 53.7 cm. Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, 2014.45. Acquisition made possible by David Buchanan in memory of Margo Buchanan, and museum purchase.

Brooklyn Museum of Art

Brooklyn, New York

Joan Cummins, Lisa and Bernard Selz Curator of Asian Art

8.

Toko Shinoda (Japan, b. 1913), Fugue, 1982. Silver and Sumi ink on paper mounted on wood panel, 53.3 × 76.2 cm. Brooklyn Museum of Art, 2014.81. Gift of Allison Tolman in honor of Dr. Susan L. Beningson.

9.

Zhang Hongtu (China, b. 1943), Mai Dang Lao (McDonald’s), 2002. Cast Bronze, Box of Fries 18.4 × 12.1 × 5.7 cm, Hamburger Box closed 8.9 × 11.7 × 12.1 cm, Fork 2.5 × 1.9 × 15.7 cm, Knife 1.6 × 0.3 × 14.8 cm. Brooklyn Museum of Art, 2014.82a–d. Gift of the artist.

The Cleveland Museum of Art

Cleveland, Ohio

Sinéad Vilbar, PhD, Curator of Japanese and Korean Art