8/19: New Exhibition at The Tang to Pair Traditional Buddhist Works with Contemporary Art

SARATOGA SPRINGS —The Frances Young Tang Teaching Museum and Art Gallery announces a new exhibition – “Forms of Awakening: Selections from the Jack Shear Collection of Himalayan Art” – will be  on view Aug. 19 through Dec. 10.

“Awakening” is a fundamental concept in Buddhist thought. It refers to the event in which one opens their consciousness to true knowledge and freedom. The word “buddha” itself is translated as “the awakened one.” For centuries, Tibetan artists have used paintings, called thangka, sculpture, divination mirrors, and initiation cards, or tsakli, as objects of veneration, guides for meditation, and tools for teaching and learning about awakening. Traditional thangka generally used established imagery, such as the mountains and valleys of Himalaya, sacred architecture, and the bodies of buddhas.

“Forms of Awakening: Selections from the Jack Shear Collection of Himalayan Art,” presents traditional Tibetan objects from the Jack Shear Collection alongside work by contemporary artists of Tibetan heritage in three sections: landscape, architecture, and the body. Together, the work reveals how such objects can transform our perceptions and awaken us to aspects of reality unnoticed in our daily lives.

“Art opens us up to new ideas and ways of thinking, and seeing an object in a new context can elicit new meanings and inspire new teaching,” said Dayton Director Ian Berry. “Placing traditional objects alongside fantastic contemporary art by Nyema Droma, Tenzin Phuntsog, and Palden Weinreb is sure to expand our understanding and lead to new paths of study and research.”

A series of public events will be held in conjunction with the exhibition. All events take place at the Tang Teaching Museum, unless otherwise specified. Friday–Saturday, Sept. 22–23: Tibetan Buddhism and Poetry Symposium; Saturday, Oct. 14: Tenzin Choegyal in Concert at the Zankel Music Center, Skidmore College; Thursday, Oct. 19: Dialogue with artist Tenzin Phuntsog; Saturday, Oct. 21: Curators’ Tour with artist Palden Weinreb and Fall Reception; Friday–Saturday, Dec. 1–2: Scholars and Artists Symposium. 

The exhibition is curated by Ben Bogin, Associate Professor and Director of the Asian Studies Program, Skidmore College, with Rachel Seligman, Malloy Curator, Tang Museum, and Ariana Maki, Associate Director of the Tibet Center and Bhutan Initiative at the University of Virginia.

For more information, call the Tang Visitor Services Desk at 518-580-8080 or visit https://tang.skidmore.edu.