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Past Exhibition: Buddhist Art Across Borders

Barakat Gallery Hong Kong proudly presents its inaugural exhibition Buddhist Art Across Borders: An Exhibition of Buddhist Art and Treasures, which will be held from 28 September to 3 November 2018.

The exhibition showcases a collection of over 100 exquisite Buddhist works of art. Their history stretches from 2nd century BC to 19th century AD, and their origins include Gandhara, India, Nepal, Tibet, Burma, Thailand, Khmer, Java, Vietnam, China, and Japan. The exhibition comprises of Buddhist figures made of a wide array of materials, including wood, bronze, gilt-bronze, gold, pottery, iron, stone, marble, jade, as well as murals, reliquaries, and other jewels.

This is a special exhibition designed to approach Buddhist art in a holistic manner. While the captivating masterpieces endow abstract Buddhist doctrines with a tangible form, the spread of Buddhist art has facilitated constant cultural interchange among Asia over a millennium. It became a source of inspiration and influence for the Asian states to socially and culturally adopt, adapt, reinvent, and finally contribute back to enrich the Buddhist art corpus.

Through comparing and examining the consistencies and discrepancies between works of art from different origins and time periods, this exhibition will reveal how a shared religion and its art form have been connecting the Asian continent for centuries, inviting visitors to contemplate about multiculturalism and globalization through appreciating the diverse aesthetic beauty of Buddhist works of art.

Barakat Gallery Hong Kong, 168c Hollywood Road, Sheung Wan
Exhibition Period: 28 September 2018 to 3 Novmeber 2018
Opening Hours: Monday to Saturday, 11:00 – 19:00
Enquiries: (852) 2638 2006

2 thoughts on “Past Exhibition: Buddhist Art Across Borders”

  1. Hello, I have a question about the status of Buddha represented sitting (first picture of the second line in the lower left), and more precisely on the posture of his left hand.
    Indeed, this “Mudra” or hand position is quite rare. What is the name of this “Mudra” and what would it mean?
    Thank you in advance for your answer

  2. Actually there is no particular mudra on this statue but the statue as a whole is a kind of posture called Royal Ease or relaxed posture; first appear in Tang Dynasty’s painting and then become the most popular and classical style for wooden carving Guanyin (Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva) in Song Dynasty.

    Differs from the formal standing or meditating statue, this posture reflect the kind of aesthetic with humanity and secularization.

    The Sanskrit names for this posture are Rajalilasana and Lalitasana. Rajalilasana, contains the words for king (rajah), play (lila), and posture (asana), so we can simply call “Royal Play” or “Royal Ease”. Lalitasana contains “lalita” means a posture for play.

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