Unplug, step away from the chaos, and embark on a journey of self-knowledge and transformation with Awaken.
Awaken presents the Tibetan Buddhist path to enlightenment with 37 artworks from the 7th to the 21st century, drawn largely from the collections of the Rubin Museum of Art, Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, and Asian Art Museum of San Francisco.
As you navigate the exhibition, you’ll learn how powerful artworks, such as sculptures, hanging scroll paintings, illuminated manuscript pages, and ritual items, help practitioners develop awareness and recognize that everything is interconnected. Inspired by the journey to awakening, you may begin to realize that your own perspective is changing and glimpse into what is known as the awakened state of mind.
Awaken: A Tibetan Buddhist Journey Toward Enlightenment is accompanied by a catalog, which further explores the artworks and the philosophical concepts discussed in the exhibition.
Awaken: A Tibetan Buddhist Journey Toward Enlightenment was originally curated by John Henry Rice, E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Curator of South Asian and Islamic Art, Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, and Jeffrey Durham, Associate Curator of Himalayan Art, Asian Art Museum of San Francisco.
Download our free audio guide app, The Rubin, to listen to a guided journey through Awaken, with art history context and contemplation. The app is available for free in the iTunes and Google Play store.
Curated for the Rubin Museum of Art by Elena Pakhoutova, Curator of Himalayan Art, Rubin Museum of Art.
Awaken: A Tibetan Buddhist Journey Toward Enlightenment is organized by the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts.
Awaken: A Tibetan Journey Toward Enlightenment is supported by Barbara Bowman, the Ellen Bayard Weedon Foundation, The Prospect Hill Foundation, Bob and Lois Baylis, public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council, and by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature, as well as by generous donations from the Museum’s Board of Trustees, individual donors, and members.
In the News
“The Rubin Museum of Art provides a rich exploration of a single meditative practice starting with the Buddha’s own spiritual reappraisal. This specificity keeps the show concrete, just as the straightforward language in labels, wall texts, audio guide and catalog keeps it accessible. This approach feels so in tune with the Rubin’s mission to connect visitors to the art and cultures of Himalayan region…”— Wall Street Journal
“The Rubin’s new exhibition, Awaken: A Tibetan Buddhist Journey Toward Enlightenment, asks us to visualize awakening as inscape, a blending of observation and introspection discoverable in our fragmented world.” — Forbes
“... a meditative exhibition that invites visitors to temporarily disconnect from the grid and “awaken” from the spiritual lull of our lives.” — The Art Newspaper
Image Credits
Tsherin Sherpa (American, b. 1968, Nepal); Luxation 1; 2016; acrylic on sixteen stretched cotton canvases; each 18 x 18in. (45.7 x 45.7 cm); Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Adolph D. and Wilkins C. Williams Fund; 2017.195a–p
Vajrabhairava; Sino-Tibetan; 15th century or later; polychromed wood; 53 1/4 x 50 3/4 x 30 3/4 in. (135.3 x 128.9 x 78.1 cm); Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Foundation and Arthur and Margaret Glasgow Fund; 93.13a–oo
Plan your visit
Send Your Comments
Comments are moderated, and will not appear on this site until the Rubin has approved them.