On the Look and Logos of Zen Art
Gregory P. Levine
(Associate Professor in the Department of History of Art, University of California at Berkeley)
4:00-6:00 p.m. Jan. 29th, Thursday
Swift Hall 208
Abstract
What makes art “Zen” and Zen art “Art”? From where and when does it arise: Southern Song dynasty China(1127-1279), Muromachi period Japan (1333-1573), London in the 1920s, or Manhattan’s 1950s Upper West Side? What has it meant to monks, nuns, rulers, literati, and lay followers of Buddhism? What about Japanophiles, apologists for Japanese culture, Beat poets, Ab Ex artists, art collectors, architects and designers, and purchasers of “Zen Micro” MP3 players? Is Zen art different from other cultural clichés of Asia(Gong fu, Cherry Blossoms, and Geisha)? Is it intrinsic to Asian culture and psychology, a construct of Japanese claims to cultural uniqueness, or endlessly adaptable and universal? What does Zen art look like?
This talk is co-sponsored by The Buddhist Studies Group and The Center for East Asian Studies.
