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Tang Museum Presents: Fall Events for ‘Forms of Awakening’ 

Unrecorded Tibetan artist, King Songtsen Gampo, 18th century, distemper on cloth, 58 ¼ x 32 ¾ inches, The Jack Shear Collection of Himalayan Art. 

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Tenzin Choegyal, YESH, Tenzin Phuntsog, and Palden Weinreb among artists, scholars, musicians, and poets coming to the Tang Teaching Museum in conjunction with the exhibition of Himalayan Art.

The series of talks, screenings, performances, and more are presented in conjunction with the exhibition Forms of Awakening: Selections from the Jack Shear Collection of Himalayan Art. 

Forms of Awakening presents traditional Tibetan objects from the Jack Shear Collection alongside work by contemporary artists of Tibetan heritage. Together, the work reveals how such objects can transform our perceptions and awaken us to aspects of reality unnoticed in our daily lives. The exhibition is on view through Dec. 10 and is organized by Benjamin Bogin, Associate Professor of Asian Studies, Skidmore College; Rachel Seligman, Malloy Curator, Tang Teaching Museum; and Ariana Maki, Associate Director of the Tibet Center and Bhutan Initiative at the University of Virginia.

Among the highlights: 

• Friday, Oct. 13, 3 p.m. Tenzin Choegyal Solo Acoustic Performance. A special solo acoustic performance by Tibetan artist, composer, activist, musical director, and cultural ambassador Tenzin Choegyal in the exhibition Forms of Awakening. This event precedes his performance with two-time Grammy Award winners the Attacca Quartet at the Arthur Zankel Music Center on Saturday, Oct. 14.

• Monday, Oct. 16, 6 p.m. Whole Grain Experiments in Film & Video: Four Films by Tenzin Phuntsog. Phuntsog is a Tibetan-American artist living and working between San Francisco and New York and working with film, installation, multi-media, and performance. The screening will feature four of his films made between 2010 and 2023. His work is also on view in Forms of Awakening. 

• Thursday, Oct. 19, 7:30 p.m. Dunkerley Dialogue with Tenzin Phuntsog & Mary Kate Donovan. Artist Tenzin Phuntsog, whose work is on view in the exhibition Forms of Awakening, will be in conversation with Mary Kate Donovan, Associate Professor of Spanish and Director of Media and Film Studies. 

• Saturday, Oct. 21, 4 p.m. Gallery Talk. Join Benjamin Bogin, Associate Professor of Asian Studies, Rachel Seligman, Assistant Director for Curatorial Affairs and Malloy Curator, and Ariana Maki, Associate Director of the Tibet Center and Bhutan Initiative at the University of Virginia, and exhibiting artist Palden Weinreb for a tour of the exhibition. The Fall Opening Reception take place at 5 p.m. 

• Thursday, Nov. 16, Noon. Curators’ Tour.

• Saturday, Dec. 2, 6 p.m. Continuum: Solo Performances by Techung and YESH. Reflecting the pairing of traditional and contemporary visual art in Forms of Awakening, Continuum features solo performances of traditional Tibetan music by Techung and contemporary Tibetan music by YESH. 

The exhibition, Forms of Awakening, celebrates a recent shared gift of over sixty Himalayan art works from Jack Shear to The Frances Young Tang Teaching Museum, The Williams College Museum of Art, and the Frances Lehman Loeb Center at Vassar College. 

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