Julianna: A Genderless Figure
A genderless figure.
A powerful stance.
The ambiguity of the Guanyin sculpture located in the Asian Art Museum is something ethereally beautiful, I am in awe whether I’m staring at it in the dark galleries of the museum or just on my computer screen.
The first time I saw the Guanyin was last year when I perused languidly through the elusive China galleries of the 3rd floor, admiring it subtly from afar. I didn’t think too much of it at the time, but still I was appreciative of the craft. It blended in with the other grand statues in the room, my eyes flitting between all of the detailed artifacts, but not focusing on one. It left my mind quickly, but remnants lingered.
The next time I saw the Guanyin was in the collection for Divine Bodies, front and center. Lead curator Jeff Durham allowed me to see the sculpture in a different light—pointing out that when you kneel to the ground in front of it (as most sculptures were used for worship), you will see the eyes of the Bodhisattva staring back at you with a benevolent smile. It was something inherently unique, something I had never seen before; this alone lead me to think about my own craft in comparison with the one of the Song dynasty.
The most recent time I saw the Guanyin was on a digital computer screen, staring back at me for a couple of days while I created a prototype, filled with the background and information that I had been missing before. With the help of the Chinese curators, I was able to put together research that completed a hazy picture, but a picture nonetheless, of the history and narrative behind the Guanyin. It was contextualization for a piece that I had learned to completely love over the waning days, contextualization that allowed me to understand the ‘why’ and ‘how’ of the piece to a fuller extent.
Overall, it’s my favorite piece in the museum. The Guanyin statue is effortlessly gorgeous and its importance in gender symbolism today is what makes it special for me.
The bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara (Guanyin)
Place of Origin: China
Date: 1100-1200
Historical Period: Song dynasty (960-1279)
Materials: Paulownia wood with pigments
Dimensions: H. 52 in x W. 40 in x D. 25 in, H. 132.1 cm x W. 101.6 cm x D. 63.5 cm
Credit Line: The Avery Brundage Collection
Department: Chinese Art
Collection: Sculpture
Object Number: B60S24+
