Arts of Asia
The Museum's collections of Asian art span nearly five millennia and encompass the cultures of China, the Himalayas, India, Japan, Korea, and Southeast Asia.
In 2007, the Museum launched an initiative to create dedicated galleries for the collection, beginning with a gallery for the arts of Korea. Galleries for the arts of India, China, and Japan followed in 2009, 2010, and 2012 respectively. Houston's Asian communities, as well as international museum and foundation partners, generously supported the construction of the galleries and purchased of works of art.
Since 2007, the novel installation of ancient, modern, and contemporary objects in the same room has engaged visitors in a dialogue that conveys transnational and global narratives within the ancient and modern worlds. The display of fragile textiles, lacquers, and works on paper changes every few months, allowing the Asian art department to create focused installations and to showcase more works from the collection.
This collecting department illuminates the specificity and diversity of form, iconography, and techniques in the Asian continent that result from local and global transmission of ideas, religion, and philosophies such as Buddhism, Confucianism, Hinduism, Jainism, and Taoism. Learn more about this collection below.
Browse Arts of AsiaCollecting Areas
Arts of China
The Ting Tsung Wei Fong Chao Arts of China gallery connects China’s ancient artistic and technical achievements with contemporary society and current art practice. Objects ranging from the Neolithic period to the present day are exhibited within the monumental, site-specific installation Odyssey by contemporary artist Cai Guo-Qiang. Highlights include bronze inlaid with silver dating from the 13th to 5th century BC; jade carvings; a limestone sculpture of the bodhisattva Avalokitesvara from the late 6th to early 7th century; an exceptional selection of Ming and Qing dynasty imperial ceramics; and Xu Bing’s late-20th-century masterpiece, A Book from the Sky.
Arts of India
The Nidhika and Pershant Mehta Arts of India Gallery, dedicated to the growing collection of Indian and Southeast Asian art, includes outstanding examples of painting, sculpture, and photography: Gandharan Buddhist sculpture from the 1st to 4th centuries; 6th-century Gupta sculpture; 13th-century Chola bronze sculptures; 16th- to 17th-century miniature Indian paintings depicting varied scenes, from the daily life of the Mughal court to tales from the ancient, epic books of the Ramayana and Mahabharata; an ornate mid-18th-century ivory flywhisk; large-scale stainless steel sculpture by contemporary artist Subodh Gupta; and photographs by Dayanita Singh.
Arts of Japan
The collection comprises Buddhist sculptures, contemporary ceramics, and works on paper that include 17th- to 19th-century hanging scroll paintings, illustrated books, woodblock prints, and lacquer. Contemporary installations and video are also on view.
Arts of Korea
The first gallery in the American South dedicated to Korean art, the Arts of Korea Gallery focuses on the dynamic epoch of the Joseon dynasty, showcasing objects from that 500-year era as well as interpretations by contemporary artists. Works from the growing MFAH collection of Korean art are on view along with prestigious loans from the National Museum of Korea. The 2024 reinstallation transformed the gallery, embodying the austere beauty and artistic restraint of the Joseon period together with the sleek, cutting-edge aesthetics of contemporary Korea. The objects on display illuminate Korean culture across generations.
Special Collections
Carroll Family Collection
View all works in Carroll Family Collection
The Portal Project
Providing a unique context for the Asian art collections, the Portal Project launched in 2005. The project invites renowned contemporary artists to create site-specific installations to activate an architectural experience and generate a dialogue with visitors and with the other works of art on display.
For the Arts of China Gallery, Cai Guo-Qiang proposed Odyssey. The monumental, 42-panel gunpowder drawing was created in a Houston warehouse with the help of more than 100 volunteers. The rendering of a Chinese landscape and garden magnifies the visitor experience in the gallery and resonates with the works of art on view.
Do Ho Suh was commissioned to create Portal for the Arts of Korea Gallery. He proposed a Korean gate modeled after an 18th-century-style Korean courtyard gate designed by his father, Modernist painter Suh Se Ok. Essentially transparent, Portal encases the image of a traditional Korean gate in negative space. The production was a lengthy process, and when Portal was completed, a new location was identified: the Kinder Building, which opened in 2020.
Publications
- Cai Guo-Qiang: Odyssey
- Elegant Perfection: Masterpieces of Courtly and Religious Art from the Tokyo National Museum
- RED HOT – Asian Art Today from the Chaney Family Collection
- Tradition and Innovation in Korean Art
- Treasures from the National Museum of Korea
- Unrivalled Splendor: The Kimiko and John Powers Collection of Japanese Art
- Your Bright Future: 12 Contemporary Korean Artists
Patron Group
Friends of Asian Art
Friends of Asian Art is dedicated to the acquisition of major works of art, ancient to modern, from China, India, Japan, Korea, and Southeast Asia. Members of this group also attend important lectures by collectors, artists, and scholars in the field of Asian art.
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Special Programs
E-book: Tradition and Innovation in Korean Art
In 2013, the Museum received a grant from the National Museum of Korea to invite three senior scholars of Korean art to give lectures and docent training related to the works of art on loan from the NMK. The grant included the development of an e-book, and Tradition and Innovation in Korean Art is now available, free of charge, as a PDF, ePub, .mobi file, and via iTunes. The Museum also offers this e-book to the Houston Independent School District.
Korea Day
In 2014, the Museum received a grant from the Korea Foundation to support Korea Day in November of that year. Three senior scholars of Korean art gave lectures in conjunction with the exhibition Treasures from Korea: Arts and Culture of the Joseon Dynasty 1392–1910. Korea Day also included an array of family programming and a performance of music and dance by artists from the National Gugak Center in Seoul.