The first known renderings of the Buddha—that of Siddhartha Gautama, the Supreme Buddha and founder of Buddhism—that appeared in the first and second centuries was from ancient India. As Buddhism continued to spread outside of India—northeast to Tibet, the Himalayas, Nepal, over to China, Burma, Indonesia, Japan, and Korea—the artists depicted in the faces of Buddha, the facial features of the people living in these lands. In addition, Buddha's ethereal features were emphasized, while its human features were de-emphasized and somewhat abstract. Hence, the multiplicity of these images.
The Asian wing of the Cantor Museum has been renovated subsequent to the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. The retrofitted and newer sections of this wing lend character to the bronze exhibits as well as, ironically, provide a contrast to the fragile jade collection and ceramics exhibited around the stairwell leading to the second floor. Unfortunately, there wasn’t much time to see the entire collection or even take a glimpse of what was upstairs. This vast acquisition of the Stanford family cannot be feasted upon in just one afternoon. In fact, I will be going back again, perhaps on a Saturday,when I don’t have to fret about the parking meter running out of time.
Moreover, I’d also like to see the exhibition Pop to Present (March 18-August 16, 2009), “the third in a yearlong series of exhibitions highlighting the museum's acquisitions from the past decade”, according to Hilarie Faberman, the Center's curator of modern and contemporary art. “Our collection program has been very active this last decade. This 10-year anniversary of the museum's reopening after the Loma Prieta earthquake provides the opportunity to celebrate the Center's growth and share the enthusiasm of curators who have purchased art for the collection and collectors who have donated works.”
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