If I hadn’t committed myself to pressing matters of civic pride, I’d be at the Mechanics’ Institute on Wednesday to see William Dalrymple talk about his new book, Nine Lives.
Fascinated as we are with the way in which much of spiritual Asia has rocketed to the fore of economics and technology, the well-respected India hand seeks to explain the transformation with his usual elegance. The event starts at 6, find more information here
(If anyone goes, please fill me in)
photo courtesy of Bunky's Pickle © used with permission
Although 1940s Shanghai had lost considerable luster courtesy of occupation, war, and revolution, another Shanghai was angling to take its place. In the same fashion that Hollywood had been responsible for inspiring glamor the world over, nightclubs in search of their own golden era underwent a certain Shanghai-ification. The city offered a powerful syllogism, an invocation that promised delight and unparalleled decadence. Even pre-Castro Cuba with its tropical, imperialist-friendly allure was home to a theater christened “The Shanghai.”
And then there was Oakland.
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Flying someplace fabulous this summer? If so you might just stumble across the Asian Art Museum on your way out of town.
Hidden Meanings: Symbolism in Chinese Art at San Francisco International Airport (photo courtesy San Francisco Airport Museums).
Beginning this week, more than one hundred objects from the museum’s collection will be featured in the San Francisco International Airport (SFO) exhibition Hidden Meanings: Symbolism in Chinese Art. Based on the work of Asian Art Museum curator emeritus Terese Tse Bartholomew, this exhibition explores auspicious symbols and wish-granting motifs found in Chinese art.
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Jeffrey Wasserstrom gave a really interesting interview on KPFA this morning about China. (He comes on at 34 minutes into the morning show).
It made me think anew about the rapid changes China has undergone over the past 40 years. When asked for his predictions for the future of China, Jeffrey said he expects China to keep surprising us since all predictions have been off base for a long time. Jeffrey, who is professor of History at UC Irvine, will be at the Asian introducing some films about contemporary China on September 5 at 11am and 2pm, and at 12pm will be signing copies of his books, including his latest Global Shanghai, 1850–2010.
Continued thoughts on where to eat near the Asian Art Museum (check out Part 1 and Part 2 for more yummy ideas).
My last post talked about selected dining options near the Asian Art Museum. I have to say that the new menu at the Café Asia has some really delicious items. I love the Orange Glazed Duck Salad and the Shanghai Dumplings (in case the Shanghai exhibition makes you hungry for Chinese food), not to mentioned the Furikake french fries (they come with the salmon sandwich or as a side). If you are really hungry for some meat try the new Puxi sweet ribs.
If you want to try dining somewhere outside the Museum here are some more suggestions:
Every clear morning I tuck in my right pant leg and pedal my way over to the museum. After setting my silver wheels up on the bike rack in the loading dock, I take the stairs up to the Education offices on the second floor. The dimly lit entry to the Education office space is located behind the tea room in the second floor Japan galleries. Because I pass through these galleries everyday, I always look forward to new rotations of Japanese art.
The latest additions to the Japan galleries include a pair of near-life-sized Japanese dolls in kimono complete with miniature accessories in a striking installation. Their innocent smiling white faces reflect in the gallery cases behind my own reflection. I know my sister would absolutely shudder at that description because she is one of those people that are just irrationally creeped out by dolls but I find them to be quite cherub-like. They are a part of the thematic exhibition Japan’s Early Ambassadors to San Francisco 1860-1927, currently on display.
This exhibition begins with the arrival of the ship Kanrin Maru and the first Japanese embassy in San Francisco, this year being the 150th anniversary of their arrival. It examines the experiences of some of the first Japanese diplomats and cultural emissaries to the United States. The exhibition also includes artwork and objects relating to Japanese artists active in San Francisco in the late 19th and early 20th century.
If you’ve been around the museum this morning, you’ve probably noticed a flurry of activity across the street from us. In celebration of the Shanghai San Francisco Sister City 30th Anniversary Celebration, the San Francisco Arts Commission is presenting a colossal sculpture by Chinese artist Zhang Huan, titled Three Heads Six Arms (2008).
We blogged about this upcoming addition to the neighborhood some months ago, and are now thrilled to actually see it going up right outside our doors!
I got into Project Runway when I caught the mother of all colds last year. Cable television, in its infinite wisdom, was catching up late-to-the-gamers with an entire season’s worth of shows in a single day and me, being soft in the head, fell hard. While I don’t stay home to watch it nowadays, I still like to keep an eye on the action, especially given that SF-based Jay Nicholas Sario is in the running this season.
Why am I writing about this on our blog? Because Sario’s ten fashion week looks were based on last Summer’s Lords of the Samurai exhibition. Since this combines both work and pleasure, I’m calling for an emergency meeting at my house Thursday night. Who’s with me?
“Hey so you know Mr. C, the history teacher? He is actually pretty cool for a teacher I guess. He set up this field trip to go to the Asian Art Museum next month.”
“Yeah? That place is hecka cool man. I went there a couple times in elementary school and we did some Chinese painting class and another time had a samurai thing.”
“Neat! You know my cousin, she’s really into art, she is doing a program there where they’re talking to a high school in China.
“That’s cool. Yo, I heard that this one time, they even had some kung-fu guys breaking bricks and stuff!”
“No way! That’s awesome. This will actually be kinda fun. Go Mr. C!”
Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa, partners in the architectural firm, SANAA, are the 2010 Laureates of the Pritzker Architecture Prize, known throughout the world as architecture’s highest honor.
Here’s a sample of their projects:
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