|
|
ASIA SOCIETY AND MUSEUM
PUBLIC OPENING DAY
NOVEMBER 17, 2001
11:00 A.M. – 6:00 P.M.
The new Asia Society and Museum, located at 725 Park Avenue and 70th Street, opens to the public on November 17, 2001 with double the original public and gallery areas and significantly improved conference, education, and performance facilities. Visitors to the newly renovated building will be welcomed by a redesigned entrance lobby on Park Avenue, a new first floor Visitor Center and a breathtaking glass-enclosed, sky-lit Garden Court, which floods the lobby with light and houses artworks, flowering vines and trees, and a new café.
Special activities planned for the public opening day begin at 11:30 a.m. with a Ganesh Puja, a celebratory invocation of Ganesh, the elephant-headed Hindu God of prosperity and fortune, to bestow good luck on our new opening.
Throughout the day until 6:00 p.m.:
- A Balinese music and dance performance featuring a welcome dance (Pendet) and a warrior dance (Baris)
- A musical performance by a Burmese drum circle which includes a set of 21 tuned drums (Pat Waing)
- A sampling of traditional Japanese music performed on a koto (zither); traditional Indian music performed on a sitar; and Bangladeshi folk songs.
- A panel discussion entitled "New Asian Voices: Asian Art Goes Global," featuring artists Nilima Sheikh, Vong Phaophanit, Yong Soon Min and Navin Rawanchaikul, all of whom have commissioned work on view at the new Asia Society and Museum. The artists will discuss the new directions, challenges and global reach of contemporary Asian art.
Three inaugural exhibitions will be on view in the new museum galleries:
- Monks and Merchants: Silk Road Treasures from Northwest China, 4th – 7th Century; comprising more than 120 spectacular artifacts – including Buddhist images, metalwork, textiles, glass, funerary furniture and ceramics – from the only stretch of the Silk Road that traversed ancient China.
- Conversations with Traditions: Shahzia Sikander and Nilima Sheikh; explores the work of two contemporary South Asian women artists in a dialogue with their traditional sources – Indian miniature paintings.
- The Creative Eye: New Perspectives on the Asia Society’s Rockefeller Collection; features a selection of pieces from the Asia Society’s permanent collection by prominent artists, writers, musicians and performing artists with special connections to Asia.
Visitors can also enjoy:
- Eight major new commissioned art pieces by Asian and Asian American contemporary artists installed throughout the building. The artists are: Heri Dono, Yong Soon Min, Navin Rawanchaikul, Shahzia Sikander, Nilima Sheikh, Sarah Sze, Vong Phaophant, and Xu Bing.
- A lovely new garden court café for elegant Asia-inspired refreshments.
- A new expanded "AsiaStore," offering a wide range of products and gift items including jewelry, textiles, stationery and home accents, and one of the most extensive collections of books on Asia in the country.
Asia Society Museum Hours: Tuesday – Sunday, 11:00 A.M. – 6:00 P.M., with extended evening hours Fridays until 9:00 P.M. Closed on Mondays and major holidays. Admission: $7; $4 for seniors and students with ID; free for members and persons under 16; and free to all on Fridays, 6:00 – 9:00 P.M.
Asia Society Internet Sites and Resources
The Asia Society is a leader in the use of communications technology and the Internet to reach and connect people
around the world. The Society's Web sites, which have earned more than a dozen national awards for excellence,
include:
www.AsiaSociety.org - provides information about the Society's programs, exhibitions, and permanent
collection, as well as general background on the Society.
www.AskAsia.org - is one of the premiere resources for K-12 educators and students interested
in Asian and Asian American studies.
www.AsiaSource.org - presents interpretation of breaking news stories, analysis of trends in Asia,
guides to Asian visual and performing arts, access to country profiles, and more.
www.AsiaBusinessToday.org - provides knowledgeable, unbiased information on a range of issues including
US-Asia trade, technology developments, and global finance.
www.AsiaFood.org - online resource on Asian cuisines featuring two searchable databases of over
500 recipes and glossary terms.
The interconnected sites offer enormous resources of information on Asia, including background and interpretation
of breaking news stories, analysis on trends in Asia and guides to Asian visual and performing arts, as well as
access to country profiles and experts on all aspects of Asian public affairs, history, and culture. The renovation
will enable the Society to use interactive technologies to more effectively promote communication between the peoples
of Asia and America.
# # #
|
|
| Country Profiles |
 |
 |
| Find maps and statistics for Asian countries. You can also compare
statistics between countries by using our comparison tool. |
|
|
| AsiaSource Experts Database |
|
| Doing research for a story? Need someone to interview? Check out this database of scholarly experts on Asia. |
|
|
