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    Cave Temples of Dunhuang: Buddhist Art on China's Silk Road

    May 7–September 4, 2016

    Getty Center

    Banner image of the exhibition title in English and Chinese, with accompanying image of a celestial dancer

    Cave 85, detail of a wall painting, Late Tang dynasty (848–907 CE). Mogao Grottoes, Dunhuang, China. Courtesy the Dunhuang Academy

  • Video: Overview of the art and history of the Mogao cave temples, 2016 (5 min., 31 sec.). © J. Paul Getty Trust

  • Large embroidered textile depicting a miraculous image of the Buddha surrounded by bodhisattvas and disciples

    Miraculous Image of Liangzhou (Fanhe Buddha), ca. 700s CE, silk thread on silk with hemp backing. British Museum, London, MAS,0.1129 (Ch.00260). © The Trustees of the British Museum

  • Image of the Buddha seated beneath a jeweled canopy, preaching to disciples and bodhisattvas

    Buddha Preaching the Law, ca. 701–750 CE, ink and pigments on silk. British Museum, London, 1919,0101,0.6 (Ch.liii.001). © The Trustees of the British Museum

  • A bodhisattva guides the spirit of a deceased Tang dynasty noblewoman to a distant, glowing paradise

    Guiding (or Yinlu) Bodhisattva, ca. 851–900 CE, ink and pigments on silk with gold leaf. British Museum, London, 1919,0101,0.47 (Ch.lvii.002). © The Trustees of the British Museum

  • A wrathful, muscular form of the bodhisattva Vajrapaṇi, his mouth agape and a fierce look on his face, dominates this banner

    Vajrapāṇi, ca. 851–900 CE, ink and colors on silk. British Museum, London, 1919,0101,0.132 (Ch xxiv.002). © The Trustees of the British Museum

  • A groom leading a horse, followed by a groom leading a camel, process across the handscroll

    Tribute Horse and Camel, ca. 900–1000 CE, ink and pigments on paper. British Museum, London, 1919,0101,0.77 (Ch 00207). © The Trustees of the British Museum

  • A traveling monk, a pack of scrolls on his back and accompanied by a tiger and an emanating buddha, walks across the paper

    Traveling Monk, ca. 851–900 CE, ink and pigments on paper. British Museum, London, 1919,0101,0.168 (Ch.00380). © The Trustees of the British Museum

  • View of the frontispiece of the Diamond Sutra, where the Buddha preaches to an assembly of disciples, deities, and bodhisattvas from his lotus throne

    Diamond Sutra, 868 CE, ink on paper. British Library, London, Or.8210/P.2. © The British Library Board

  • On a platform inside Cave 85 sit statues of the Buddha and two disciples. Colorful paintings enliven the walls

    Cave 85, view of the interior, Late Tang dynasty (848–907 CE). Mogao Grottoes, Dunhuang, China. Courtesy the Dunhuang Academy

  • The three-headed, multi-armed Hindu deity Narayana appears seated above two other deities

    Cave 285, detail of wall painting, Western Wei dynasty (535–556 CE). Mogao Grottoes, Dunhuang, China. Courtesy the Dunhuang Academy

  • Exterior view of the cliff face at Dunhuang, showing the nine-story temple and a group of visitors

    Nine-storey temple (Cave 96), Mogao Grottoes, Dunhuang, China. Courtesy the Dunhuang Academy

  • Drawings depicting the correct hand positions and gestures for a ritual honoring the bodhisattva of compassion, Avalokitesvara

    Mudra Drawings, ca. 851–900 CE, ink on paper. British Museum, London, 1919,0101,0.83+ (Ch 00143). © The Trustees of the British Museum

  • Wall painting of celestial musicians playing lutes, flutes, and a stringed instrument

    Cave 85, detail of wall painting of musicians, Late Tang dynasty (848–907 CE). Mogao Grottoes, Dunhuang, China. Courtesy the Dunhuang Academy

  • Distant view of the Mogao Caves from across the desert, showing the sand dunes in the background

    Overview of Mogao Grottoes from Sanwei Mountains, looking west toward the Mingsha Dunes. Courtesy the Dunhuang Academy. Photo: Sun Zhijun

Cave Temples of Dunhuang: Buddhist Art on China's Silk Road

May 7–September 4, 2016, Getty Center

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On the western edge of the Gobi Desert, near the ancient oasis town of Dunhuang, China, hundreds of cave temples were carved into a cliff face and decorated with Buddhist wall paintings and sculptures. The caves are known as the Mogao (peerless) Grottoes. From the 4th to the 14th century, Dunhuang bore witness to intense religious, commercial, and cultural exchange along the trade routes linking the East and West, known collectively as the Silk Road. The documents and artifacts discovered in the site’s famed Library Cave, along with the paintings and sculptures found in almost 500 other caves, focus primarily on Buddhism. They also tell tales of the merchants, monks, and ruling families who lived, worked, and worshipped in the Dunhuang region.

Cave Temples of Dunhuang: Buddhist Art on China’s Silk Road explores the significance of the Mogao Grottoes and highlights the more than 25 years of collaboration between the Getty Conservation Institute and the Dunhuang Academy to protect and conserve this UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Related Events

Dunhuang as Nexus of the Silk Road during the Middle Ages
Lecture by Victor H. Mair
Thursday, May 19, 2016, 7:00 p.m.

Cave Temples of Dunhuang: History, Art, and Materiality
Symposium
Friday, May 20, 9:00 a.m.–5:30 p.m. (Getty)
Saturday, May 21, 9:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m. (UCLA)

East and West of Dunhuang: Music Carried by the Wind
Concert
Friday, May 20, 2016, 7:30 p.m.

The Diamond Sutra: A Story of Printing, Piety, and Preservation on the Silk Road
Lecture by Susan Whitfield
Sunday, June 5, 2016, 4:00 p.m.

Family Festival
Saturday, June 11, 2016, 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.

Cornelia Funke's Voyage into the Caves of the Thousand Buddhas
Storytelling and Book Signing
Sunday, June 19, 2016, 11:00 a.m.

Heaven and Hell on the Silk Road
Lecture by John Kieschnick
Sunday, June 26, 2106, 4:00 p.m.

Pop-Up Summer Residencies: The Silk Road Ensemble
May 25 and 26, 2016
June 14 and 15, 2016
July 13 and 14, 2016

Dunhuang Inspired: An Evening with Tan Dun
Musical Performance and Conversation
Sunday, July 17, 2016, 5:00 p.m.

The World in the Year 1000: The View from Dunhuang
Lecture by Valerie Hansen
Sunday, July 24, 2016, 4:00 p.m.

Dunhuang Cave Art: Hidden Illumination in Dark Times and the Secret Ambrosia of Great Compassion
Conversation with Peter Sellars and Robert Thurman
Wednesday, August 10, 2016, 7:00 p.m.

The Cave of the Silken Web (1927)
Film screening with the Silk Road Ensemble performing original music
Wednesday, August 24, 2016, 8:00 p.m.

The Care of Time and the Dimensions of Conservation at the Mogao Grottoes
Lecture by Neville Agnew
Sunday, August 28, 2016, 4:00 p.m.

More information about these events

Videos

Painting the replica caves

Watch videos about the history and art of the Mogao cave temples, the Conservation Institute’s work with the Dunhuang Academy, and mounting the exhibition at the Getty Center.

PODCAST

Painted cave temple

In this episode, Art + Ideas host Jim Cuno speaks with the exhibition curators and project specialists about the creation and preservation of the Mogao cave temples, as well as their historical importance.

VIRTUAL TOURS: THE MOGAO GROTTOES

Seated Buddha cave painting

Visit the Dunhuang Academy website for a virtual tour of the Mogao Grottoes, including the caves that are replicated at the Getty Center (Caves 275, 285, and 320)

CONSERVING THE CAVES

PARTNERS & SPONSORS

Gallery Tours

Tuesdays and Thursdays at 2:00 p.m.
May 10–September 1, 2016

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