Japanese Zen Buddhism and the Impossible Painting

Archival Program Information
For current Research Institute events, please see The Getty Event Calendar

Lecture




Sand and Stone Garden, Portland
 
September 23, 2014
7:00 p.m.
Museum Lecture Hall, The Getty Center

Created by the Zen monk-painter Josetsu for the shogun Ashikaga Yoshimochi, The Gourd and the Catfish (ca. 1413)—which involved the participation of some 32 Zen monks—has been designated a Japanese national treasure and is celebrated as a Zen masterpiece.

In this lecture, Professor Yukio Lippit considers the ways in which the work mobilizes new modes of artistic representation to pictorialize the nonsensical nature of Zen koans (riddles or paradoxical statements that demonstrate the inadequacy of logical reasoning). Lippit also explores the connections between ink paintings, medieval shogunal culture, and Zen Buddhism's doctrinal emphasis on the concept of emptiness.

Yukio Lippit is Professor of History of Art and Architecture at Harvard University.

This lecture and the accompanying publication (due out in fall 2015) are sponsored by the Getty Research Institute Council.


Image: Su Shi (Dongpo) in a Straw Hat and Sandals, ca. 1450–1500. New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art. The Harry G. C. Packard Collection of Asian Art, Gift of Harry G. C. Packard, and Purchase, Fletcher, Rogers, Harris Brisbane Dick, and Louis V. Bell Funds, Joseph Pulitzer Bequest, and The Annenberg Fund Inc. Gift, 1975 (1975.268.39). www.metmuseum.org


 
How to Get Here
The Getty Center is located at 1200 Getty Center Drive in Los Angeles, California, approximately 12 miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles. See Hours, Directions, Parking for maps and driving directions.

Concessions
An assortment of sandwiches, sodas, and wine will be available for purchase outside the Museum Lecture Hall prior to the event. Please note that food and drink are not permitted inside the lecture hall.

Parking
Parking is $15, but $10 after 5 p.m. Note, late arrivals cannot be guaranteed seating.

The Getty Research Institute is a program of the J. Paul Getty Trust. Other programs of the Trust include the J. Paul Getty Museum, the Getty Conservation Institute, and the Getty Foundation.