Resources

Hear Art Speak Interns discuss a work of art in the Shanghai exhibition on view at the Asian Art Museum (February 12-September 5, 2010).

Watch a timelapse video of Asian Art Museum and the Rubell Family Collection staff installing Boat by artist Zhu Jinshi. Experience Boat at the Asian Art Museum during the exhibition, 28 Chinese (June 5–August 16, 2015).

This conversation celebrates the opening of the exhibition Out of Character: Decoding Chinese Calligraphy (on view at the Asian Art Museum from October 5, 2012–January 13, 2013). It explores the overlapping interests of internationally recognized contemporary artist Xu Bing and Jerry Yang, a passionate collector and practitioner of Chinese calligraphy. The museum’s director, Dr. Jay Xu, moderates the discussion, focusing on the new artwork by Xu Bing commissioned for the exhibition, along with masterpiece artworks from Jerry Yang’s collection.

Join world renowned contemporary Chinese artist Zhang Huan in conversation with Asian Art Museum director Jay Xu. The San Francisco Arts Commission will present the world premiere of Zhang’s colossal work,Three Heads Six Arms (2008), which will be the focal point of San Francisco’s Civic Center Plaza, nestled between City Hall and the Asian Art Museum. Standing over 26 feet tall and weighing almost 15 tons, the copper sculpture is the artist’s largest work to date. Zhang, who is based in Shanghai, is widely regarded as one of the most influential and provocative contemporary artists working today. Don’t miss this opportunity to learn more about this artists work against the backdrop of the Shanghai exhibition at the Asian Art Museum and the city-wide celebration of the 30th anniversary of the San Francisco Shanghai Sister City relationship. The program will be introduced by Luis R. Cancel, Director of Cultural Affairs for the San Francisco Arts Commission. Please note Mr. Zhang will speak in Chinese. English translation will be provided by Wang Xiaoyu.

Born in Hong Kong and raised in Nigeria and Ontario, Howie Tsui’s influences include ghost stories, Buddhist hell scrolls, Japanese monster culture, and Hong Kong vampire films. As part of his Horror Fables series, Tsui contributes to Phantoms of Asia: Contemporary Awakens the Past (on view at the Asian Art Museum from May 18-September 2, 2012) intricately drawn human-monster hybrids that combine imagery from traditional Asian folklore with contemporary pop culture.

Fresh water jar in the form of a wooden bucket, 1625–1635. Made in China for Japanese patrons. Porcelain with underglaze blue. Asian Art Museum, Gift of Roy Leventritt, B69P95L.

Flowerpot, approx. 1100. China; Henan province, Northern Song dynasty (960–1126). Jun ware, glazed stoneware. The Avery Brundage Collection, B60P95.

2010 is the Year of the Tiger! MATCHA kicks off the Lunar New Year and special exhibition Shanghai with dynamic tiger-style kung fu (martial art) demonstrated by Shaolin Temple USA monks.

Where is the line between history and mythology? In Extracted, artist Ranu Mukherjee eclipses the boundaries between the two, placing them in the same universe. Commissioned for the Asian Art Museum’s 50th anniversary, this exhibition drew inspiration from California’s Gold Rush, the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, the ancient text The Classic of Mountain and Seas, and the museum’s own collection.