Catalog of an exhibition held at Asia Society Museum, New York, February 7-May 7, 2023; and at Asian Art Museum, San Francisco, June 16-September 18, 2023. Includes bibliographical references (pages 209-215) and index.
Contents:
Telling images: the subject of hell in Asian art / Adriana Proser -- From moral catechism to scathing critique: picturing hell in Islamic artistic traditions / Christiane Gruber -- Seeing hell in South Asia / Phyllis Granoff -- Imagining the afterlife in East Asia / D. Max Moerman -- Hell imagery and temple complexes in Southeast Asia / Geok Yian Goh -- Apocalypse now: conceptions of hell in contemporary Asian art / Michelle Yun Mapplethorpe.
Summary:
"Hell has been embodied and portrayed in terrifying, bizarre, and occasionally humorous incarnations across religions and cultures for millennia. Whether considered as places of eternal or finite punishment, underworlds provide a rich setting for a potent cast of characters that have caught the imaginations of artists and patrons who have shaped the visual cultures of Asia's system of belief, particularly Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism, and Islam. Trough masterpieces from West Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, East Asia, and the diaspora, paired with essays from renowned scholars, this publication explores both differences and similarities in conceptions of the afterlife and artistic practices from religion to religion and culture to culture. This journey trough judgment, punishment, and even the promise of salvation sheds light on the fundamental questions of life, death and existence."-- From publisher's website.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.