Buddhist Art

Catalog description

Analyzes the development of Buddhist visual culture throughout Asia from its South Asian origins in the 1st century BCE through the18th century CE. Special attention on the earliest developments in South Asia (India and Pakistan), as well as how Buddhist art forms changed as the religion spread elsewhere and over time. Selected readings, educational videos and short lectures introduce key elements for understanding artistic production in various cultures where Buddhism flourished, with a particular focus on the interplay between religious issues and other factors that resulted in specific changes. Students learn to see commonality in certain developments despite surface differences, such as in the creation of monuments that mark or articulate sacred space and the myriad ways in which images play a part in Buddhist practice.