2018 Exhibitions
Potasia: Potatoism in the East
March 15 through June 15, 2018
Charles B. Wang Center Skylight Gallery
Potasia: Potatoism in the East features an insightful and entertaining survey of artworks with the potato as their central subject matter. The pieces showcase a wide spectrum of potatoes, in all manner of genres and situations—from the fantastical to the realistic, and from the comedic to the serious by [#] artists. The potato is not only a nutritious and earthy food but, as featured in these Asian artworks, it is also an egalitarian, versatile, multifaceted, multilingual, and multidisciplinary motif.
A diverse body of artworks examine the social, cultural, and political attitudes and ideals attached to the potato. With a focus on contemporary Asian art—featuring installations, sculpture, drawings, paintings, photos, videos, and even socialist propaganda posters—Potasia: Potatoism in the East highlights a number of curious and fascinating examples of the ubiquitous potato as represented in Asian popular culture in fine art, books, videos, cartoons, movies, songs, toys, and snacks.
By drawing on a long artistic and historical lineage, as well as by making contrasts and comparisons with diverse mediums, this exhibition illustrates the manifold creativity in the contemporary art world.
This exhibition is curated by Jinyoung Jin, director of cultural programs at the Charles B. Wang Center, and artist Jeffrey Allen Price.
The Charles B. Wang Center thanks North Fork Potato Chips for its in-kind donation of potato chips in support of the exhibit, Potasia: Potatoism in the East exhibition.
RELATED PROGRAMS
ART CRAWL
Guided Exhibition Tour by Jeffrey Allen Price
Wednesday, March 21, 2018 @ 4:30 PM
Charles B. Wang Center Skylight Gallery
LECTURE
The Motif of Potatoes in Korean Media (Old and New)
Thursday, March 22, 2018 @ 4 PM
Charles B. Wang Center Lecture Hall I
LECTURE
Potatoism: A Global History of Potato Art
Tuesday, March 27, 2018 @ 1 PM
Charles B. Wang Center Lecture Hall I
WORKSHOP
Potato Prints
Friday, April 6, 2018 @ 10 AM–12 PM, 1–3 PM
Charles B. Wang Center Chapel
WORKSHOP
Small Potatoes: Creating Crochet Amigurumi
Friday, April 20, 2018 @ 10 AM–12 PM, 1–3 PM
Charles B. Wang Center Chapel
LECTURE
North Korea: Addressing Human Needs in a Challenging Environment
Friday, April 27, 2018 @ 3 PM
Charles B. Wang Center Lecture Hall I
Virtual Journeys: Chinese Buddhist Art and Architecture in the Digital Era
September 12 through December 15, 2018
Charles B. Wang Center Skylight Gallery
Virtual Journeys: Chinese Buddhist Art and Architecture in the Digital Era is an innovative exhibition that uses VR technology to transport you to China to admire and explore Buddhist cave art. It showcases five famous ancient Buddhist sites of China: the Dunhuang Grottoes, the Dazu Rock Carvings, the Kaihuasi Monastery, the Yungang Grottoes, and the Longmen Grottoes.
From the 4th through 14th centuries, hundreds of caves were painstakingly carved out of the cliffsides by hand, all under the sponsorship of Buddhist monks, local officials, and wealthy families who wished to accrue karmic merit and perform acts of veneration. These decorated cave walls and ceilings are covered with elaborate paintings that depict stories of the Buddha, Buddhist sutras, ornamental designs, scenes of social and commercial life, and portraits of the projects’ sponsors. The caves also contain brightly painted clay sculptures of the Buddha and other figures, the largest sculpture being over 100 feet tall. Unfortunately, many artifacts and places of ancient Chinese cultural heritage are disappearing for reasons not limited to natural disasters. The erosion of time, human destruction, war, urban development, expanding tourism, and lack of preservation technologies for excavated archaeological findings all contribute to an ongoing erasure of a fascinating past.
With rapid developments in computer science and achievements in the fields of graphic technology, digital image processing, and artificial intelligence, this exhibition celebrates the potential impact of VR on art, culture, education, and curatorial practice and provides new opportunities to conserve, restore, and research our historical past.
Special thanks to Dr. Di Luo (Wake Forest University), Dr. Wu-Wei Chen (NYU Shanghai), Dr. Jianwei Zhang (Peking University), Dr. Fletcher John Coleman (Harvard University), Dr. Changyu Diao (Zhejiang University), Dunhuang Academy, the Longmen Grottoes Research Institute, and the Yungang Grottoes Research Institute in China.
The exhibition is co-organized by the Charles B. Wang Center and the China Center/Confucius Institute at Stony Brook University.
RELATED PROGRAMS
SYMPOSIUM
Virtual Journeys: Chinese Buddhist Art and Architecture in the Digital Era
Thursday, September 27, 2018 @ 12 PM
Charles B. Wang Center Theatre
VIRTUAL REALITY DEMO
Chinese Buddhist Art and Architecture in the Digital Era
Every Wednesday from September 12 – December 5, 2018
12 PM – 1 PM
Charles B. Wang Center Skylight Gallery
Free Admission but RSVP is required.
ART CRAWL
Guided Exhibition Tour
Wednesday, October 24, 2018 @ 1:30 PM
Charles B. Wang Center Zodiac Gallery