The Art of Buddhism: An Introduction to Its History and Meaning

Description

More than two hundred photographs - most in stunning full color - provide the visual context for this tour of the world of Buddhist art. From the earliest second-century B.C.E. archaeological evidence to the nineteenth century, this book showcases the marvelous variety of Buddhist art through the ages, from every country and region where Buddhism has influenced the culture in a significant way, including India, Afghanistan, Central Asia, China, Korea, Japan, Tibet, Sri Lanka, Burma and all the regions of Southeast Asia. Included in the rich variety of forms are architecture and monumental art, statuary, paintings, calligraphy, fresco, brushwork, and textile arts. Denise Leidy's guide is a perfect text for courses on Asian and Buddhist art - but it is also accessible enough to be enjoyed by anyone with an interest in Buddhism or Asian art.

Denise Patry Leidy is curator of the Department of Asian Art at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. She is the author of numerous articles, and coauthor, with Robert A. F. Thurman, of Mandala- The Architecture of Enlightenment.

"Denise Leidy's book offers a lucid pilgrimage through of the art of Buddhist enlightenment, from the vivacious, dawn-fresh sculptural traditions of ancient India up to the threshhold of the globalist twentieth century. The language is clear; the information dense and rich; the art beyond compare. Student, scholar, and devotee alike have much to learn from this fine scholar."- Holland Cotter, Art Critic, New York Times "A sumptuous survey of Buddhist art from all over Asia. Denise Leidy deploys her encyclopedic knowledge to bring the art vividly to life, and her choices of objects are utterly superb. This volume is a must for any lover of the classical Asian art of enlightenment."-Robert Thurman, Jey Tsong Khapa Professor of Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, Columbia University; founder of Tibet House, U.S.; and author of Infinite Life "A work of sustained scholarship from a distinguished art historian whose command of Buddhist art, coupled with her keen eye for its iconographic and aesthetic traditions, has made accessible to readers-for the first time in decades-a body of knowledge that will form the core of any informed understanding of Buddhist culture and traditions from a global perspective. This book is destined to become a classic."-Mimi Hall Yiengpruksawan, Professor of History of Art, Yale University "A cogent and focused introduction to the subject. Clear links between [Buddhist] art and practice are consistently and intelligently presented throughout."-Buddhist Art News