Revised Concept

In a sentence:

I hope to prototype a few potential vehicles for viewing Himalayan art in a culturally sensitive and accessible manner.


In a paragraph:

Historically, museums and cultural art institutions have displayed relics and art of "foreign" countries and lands via intricate exhibition designs. While this method of display serves the purpose of representation and documentation, the rich histories and provenance of the objects are often not communicated to the viewer in an adequate and engaging manner. I am investigating alternative methods for the presentation, representation and communication of cultural property using a set of tangkas that are currently housed at the Rubin Museum of Art, New York as a case study. The paintings can be traced back to being created by Situ Panchen and his seat at Palpung Monastery in Tibet. The effects of time and the Chinese Cultural Revolution, prompted the art to be relocated to various collections throughout the world. The set's original locale- a monastery is in ruins and so at the moment the only way to view the work is in museums and/or photographs. This relocation of art poses several questions that are worth considering, including:
- How are various cultures of the world represented on an international stage?
- How do museums and other sacred spaces re-contextualize culture?
- How can technology reconstruct and/or contribute to history?
- What kinds of stories are being told about the art?
- How can something politically charged be explained to a mainstream audience?
Over the course of the next four weeks I hope to prototype a few potential vehicles for viewing this art in a more culturally sensitive and accessible manner.