Channels: Exhibitions
Learn about current IMA events with Melvin and Bren Simon Director and CEO Maxwell Anderson. This episode features a conversation with IMA Curator of Asian Art, Jim Robinson.
Hi, I'm Max Anderson, The Melvin and Bren Simon Director and CEO. I am happy to welcome you to a wonderful new exhibition titled Power and Glory: Court Arts of the Ming Dynasty.
I'm here with Jim Robinson, who is The Jane Weldon Myers Curator of Asian Art, and Jim you brought the show here. What, in an essence, are you trying to accomplish by having this exhibition in Indianapolis?
Well, I am hoping that folks can see one of the great empires of the world. This empire is about as influential throughout the world as, let's say, the Roman Empire was for western culture.
In terms of the mix of objects, I know there are about 240 works in the exhibition.
Correct.
It's quite broad based and I assume that was intentional to give a range of accomplishments of Ming artisans.
That's exactly what appealed to me as being a good exhibition here. It's not just focused on Ming Dynasty ceramics or Ming Dynasty paintings; it has everything here from rooftop ornaments to lady's hairpins.
It was organized by the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco. They worked with the Beijing Palace Museum, The Nanjing Municipal Museum, and the Shanghai Museum. Now, is that unusual to have that kind of collaboration among Chinese institutions?
A little bit unusual, and it made the process a lot more difficult, I have to work with three people rather than just one, but it allowed them to select really specific things for this exhibition.
For instance, The Nanjing Municipal Museum has many of the objects that were found from excavated tombs, so we have objects here that we can match up with biographies
in the Ming history, which I think brings a wonderful personal dimension to them.
Thanks for joining us today in a tour of Power and Glory and for more information, please go to the IMA's website at imamuseum.org.
Jim, thanks very much for working with us today.
I enjoyed it.
Post new comment