Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art Celebrates Centennial
In Partnership With the National Museum of Asian Art

A two-week festival marking Asian Pacific American Heritage Month commences on 1 May, adding to special exhibitions including Ay-Ō's Happy Rainbow Hell.

The United States' first national art museum, the Freer Gallery of Art, opened its doors to the public in Washington D.C. in 1923. Along with the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, it now forms The National Museum of Asian Art, home to one of the world's most important collections of art from the region.

'The National Museum of Asian Art has played an essential role in fostering a greater understanding and appreciation of Asian art and its intersections with America for nearly a century,' said Lonnie Bunch, Secretary of the Smithsonian.

'We welcome the public to join the museum as it marks this anniversary and sets its trajectory for the next 100 years,' Bunch said.

Three lead exhibitions were organised for the Museum's centenary.

Ay-Ō's Happy Rainbow Hell is America's first museum show devoted to Japan's 'Rainbow Artist' Ay-Ō. The exhibition, which includes silkscreen prints, an interactive gesture wall, and digital haptic boxes, continues through 10 September.

Presented in collaboration with The City Palace Museum in Udaipur, A Splendid Land: Paintings from Royal Udaipur is a major survey of works from the city of Udaipur in Rajasthan, India. It continues through 14 May.

Over 200 objects from the Shang dynasty capital of Anyang feature in the exhibition Anyang: China's Ancient City of Kings, which continues through 28 April, 2024. The presentation includes digital content created by production studio UNIT9 to help bring to life the city as it was 3,000 years ago.

The Museum's centennial celebrations will shift up a gear next month with two weeks of programming organised for Asian Pacific American Heritage Month.

Events include: a birthday bash by genre-melting musicians Chromic Duo; a K-pop masterclass led by the Xuejuan Dance Ensemble; and director Frank Chi's presentation of his 2022 film 38 at the Garden, about the 'Linsanity' surrounding basketball player Jeremy Lin during the 2012 NBA season.

The full schedule of events, which take place from 1 May to 14 May, can be found here.

Other major developments at the Museum include: the restoration of James McNeill Whistler's Peacock Room, which showcases American design in dialogue with objects from Asia; a new introductory hall featuring a rotating display of artworks; and the Museum's first gallery devoted to modern and contemporary art.

The modern and contemporary art gallery is slated to open in September 2023 with a video installation by Korean artist Park Chan-Kyong, followed by presentations of soon-to-be announced artists from Vietnam, Cambodia, and Bangladesh.

Looking to the future, Chase F. Robinson, Director of the Museum, said, 'our vision is to transform the National Museum of Asian Art into a space where a wide range of visitors can come together to celebrate, learn about and interact with Asian art and cultures, including their intersection with America.'

'In our second century, we're becoming a space to convene, learn, reflect, and forge connections through art,' Robinson said. —[O]