The Japan Foundation Los Angeles, 5700 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 100, in Los Angeles, will present a special lecture series on “Deities in Japanese Art” starting this month.
Rather than a purely academic approach to Japanese religious art, the purpose of this series is to help participants’ locate visual clues by which the deities can be identified and differentiated. The figures will be contextualized within Japanese religious history and connected to their iconographical antecedents in the arts of India, China, and Korea.
The first talk will introduce the indigenous religion of Shinto and the deities within; the following four will look at Buddhist deities from four distinct classes: Buddhas, bodhisattvas, wisdom kings, and celestial beings.
This lecture series is the product of a special collaboration with the Los Angeles County Museum of Art’s Japanese Art Department.
The schedule is as follows.
Session 1: Shintoon Tuesday, Sept. 19, at 7 p.m. Before Buddhism entered the archipelago in the 6th century CE, Japanese people adhered to the naturalistic religion Shinto, in which they worshipped the kami, spirits believed to inhabit natural elements that inspired awe. These ranged from the sun goddess Amaterasu to the mischievous celestial dogs known as Tengu.
Session 2: Buddhason Oct. 10. For many, saying the name “Buddha” evokes the image of a serene ascetic or of a portly, laughing soul. However, the Buddhist pantheon is occupied by many different figures associated with the title “Buddha”; the most prominent being Shakamuni, the historical Buddha; Amida, the Buddha of the Western Paradise; and Yakushi, the Medicine Buddha.
Session 3: Bodhisattvason Nov. 14. The bodhisattvas are deities who have achieved enlightenment themselves but have delayed their own exit from the cycle of rebirth to guide others to enlightenment. Japanese Buddhism is full of these strange yet wonderfully virtuous attendant deities, from the monk-like bodhisattva of the hells to the horse-headed bodhisattva of compassion.
Session 4: Wisdom Kingson Dec. 19. With their wrathful visages and weapons, the Wisdom Kings protect the buddhas and intimidate wayward Buddhist practitioners back into devotion. Rather than a proclivity to violence, however, this class of deity embodies the buddha’s compassion and grace, in their unfaltering dedication to returning lost souls into his presence.
Session 5: Celestial Kingson Jan. 16, 2018. The final class of deities — known collectively as the celestial beings — primarily serve as guardians and protectors of the Buddhist cosmos. The most prominent are the Four Celestial Guardian Kings who oversee the cardinal directions, the chief of whom came to be worshiped alone as a Buddhist deity; other examples include the Temple Guardians and Twelve Celestial Generals.
The lecturer is Michael VanHartingsveldt, who graduated in 2017 with a master’s degree in East Asian art business from Sotheby’s Institute of Art and Claremont Graduate University. His work as a research and curatorial intern with the Pavilion for Japanese Art at LACMA has culminated in several notable projects, including a detailed analysis of the museum’s sculpture of Fudō Myōō and an exhibition with Hollis Goodall entitled “Japanese Paintings: A Walk in Nature” on themes in Edo-period paintings of the landscape.
Note: Dates are subject to change. Admission is free but RSVPs are required. For more information, call (323) 761-7510 or visit www.jflalc.org/ac-lecture39-deities1.
Previous:Montebello
The Most Memorable OverclockingHow Airbnb is aiding Hurricane Helene victimsMotoGP 2025 livestream: How to watch MotoGP World Championship for freeWhich iPad Model Should You Get?TechSpot PC Buying Guide: 2025 UpdateNASA orbiter snaps photo of Japanese moon lander wreckageWordle today: The answer and hints for June 27, 2025NYT Connections hints and answers for June 27: Tips to solve 'Connections' #747.NASA orbiter snaps photo of Japanese moon lander wreckageHow hot will Earth get? FTC finalizes settlement with Zoom over misleading encryption claims Jeff Bezos' Amazon legacy by the numbers Apple's Black Unity Apple Watch is now available for purchase Jeff Bezos to step down as Amazon CEO Pound out your pandemic stress with Theragun and Hypervolt's massage guns Frontline nurse wins contest to watch movies in a remote lighthouse by herself Google to pay $3.8 million to underpaid female engineers and overlooked job candidates Apple's VR headset will have dual 8K displays, report claims Possible Apple Car specs revealed, and they're not bad, not bad at all IGN Fan Fest 2021: What to know about free virtual event
0.1423s , 9851.09375 kb
Copyright © 2025 Powered by 【?? ???】Lecture Series on “Deities in Japanese Art’,Feature Flash