Nachrichten und Veranstaltungen

Based on the analogy of “snapshots” used in philological studies to explain how the history and development of Buddhist scriptures can be traced across several languages and contexts, Claudia Wenzel first discusses some well-known specimen of Diamond Sutra texts in Chinese Buddhist art, written on paper as well as carved in stone. Over the last years, the discovery of and research on Buddhist stone carved sutra texts gave rise to new considerations about text and image in Chinese Buddhism, as patrons and donors seem to have intentionally chosen one over the other in many cases. The philological “snapshot” analogy that applies to all Buddhist texts independent of their material form can also be useful in art historical studies when iconographic image traditions are revealed.

In diesem Vortrag sollen die der AIK vor kurzem zur Verfügung gestellten Tonstatuen aus Südindien vorgestellt und erklärt werden. Die Statuen wurden angefertigt von Mu. Saravanan, der seine Gattin Prof. Ulrike Niklas nach Deutschland begleitet hatte und hier sodann das traditionelle Kunsthandwerk seiner Kaste weiter ausübte – jedoch mit einem neuen Fokus. Zunächst erfolgt eine kurze Einführung in den religiösen und kulturellen Kontext der Statuen und ihrer traditionellen Schöpfer, der Töpfer von Madurai und Umgebung. Sodann wird jede Statue einzeln betrachtet und mit Bezug auf ihre Bedeutung, ihre Verwendung im Ritual und ihre Ikonographie analysiert. Im Laufe des Vortrages werden auch Themen wie Individualismus in ritueller Kunst, Zweckentfremdung ritueller Artefakte sowie Auswirkung der Modernisierung auf traditionelles Kunsthandwerk angesprochen.

Over the last decades, videogames have developed into a transregionally successful entertainment medium and increasingly recognized space of cultural and artistic expression. But in what ways are they also spaces of political imagination and play? In this presentation, I will revisit the development of gaming culture in Japan, starting with early arcade machine, and gradually diversifying into so-called AAA titles, indie games, social games, and games as services, which finally have radically changed the concept of a game work. Considering a range of examples, I suggest that the location of play has shifted from games, to other digital spaces.

Was wird durch chinoise Maskeraden direkt und indirekt ausgedrückt und kommuniziert? Und was spiegeln sie über die Beziehung Europas und Asiens während des 18. Jahrhunderts wider? Fest steht, dass chinoise Maskeraden nur eine Facette der komplexen und vielschichtigen Beziehung zwischen Ost und West darstellen. In ihnen drückt sich in künstlerischer Form ein bestimmter Aspekt der europäischen Asienrezeption und des asiatischen Einflusses auf die europäische Kultur aus. Ein Vergleich mit anderen künstlerischen Ausdrucksformen der europäischen Faszination für Asien verhilft zu einem größeren Verständnis dafür, in welchem Umfang, Rahmen und insbesondere auf welcher Ebene ein Austausch zwischen Asien und Europa stattfand. Dabei werden Erscheinungsform und Funktion von chinoisen Maskeraden mit dem Aspekt der Transkulturalität in Verbindung gebracht und anhand von Bildmaterial veranschaulicht und diskutiert.

Prof. Dr. Julia Hegewald, Dr. Petra Linscheid und Prof. Dr. Nikolai Grube Materielle Kultur macht das Thema Abhängigkeit auf unterschiedlichen Ebenen „greifbar“. Einerseits können Objekte selbst Instrumente sein, um Abhängigkeitsverhältnisse zu etablieren und zu verstärken. Bilder und Kunstwerke können Zeugnis von sozialen Praktiken ablegen, die mit extremer Ungleichheit verbunden sind. Aber es ist auch die Art und Weise, wie Ressourcen genutzt sowie Güter produziert und konsumiert werden, die tief in soziale Asymmetrien eingebettet ist. Daher können die Beziehungen zwischen Menschen und ihrer materiellen Welt einen analytischen Rahmen für die Untersuchung von Abhängigkeiten bilden. Schon allein, welche Kleidung eine Person trägt und welche Nahrungsmittel sie isst, zeigt ihre soziale Stellung in einem System asymmetrischer Abhängigkeiten an.

Junko Matsubara is a dancer and dance teacher born in Tokyo and living in Germany for the last decade. Junko dances in a variety of dance styles, but today she is going to demonstrate the basics of Butoh. Butoh is a contemporary Japanese dance form which evolved during the 1960s and 70s. This art form was initiated by Tatsumi Hijikata (1928–86) and it gained international recognition from the 1980s onwards. Butoh dance is highly experimental and often challenges social norms.

Am 05. April hält Frau Prof. Dr. Julia A. B. Hegewald im Rahmen der Ringvorlesung des Zentrums für Religion und Gesellschaft (ZERG) und des Bonn Center for Dependency and Slavery Studies (BCDSS; Research Area C) den Vortrag “Vira-Saiva and Jaina Rivalries in Medieval South India: Creating and Overcoming Structures of Dependency”.

Vortrag von Dr. Petra Rösch zu "“The programme of this museum is ART!” - The first catalogue of the collection of the Museum for East Asian Art in Cologne by Alfred Salmony". This year, the first catalogue published by the Museum of East Asian Art in Cologne achieves its centenary. This catalogue on early Buddhist and Han-period stone sculptures was published in 1922 by Alfred Salmony, academic assistant and since 1924 deputy director to Frieda Fischer-Wieruszowski. This talk will briefly introduce the work and life of Alfred Salmony and the history of the MOK. Some stone sculptures published in Salmony’s catalogue will be discussed in the light of academic approaches of the early 20th century, which differ from present day art historical methods.

Public lecture by Dr. Gerald Kozicz: The Triloknath Temple of Tonde holds a special position within the topographical and religious landscape of the valley where the Chandra and Bhaga rivers unite. Although the temple is located in the lower part of the valley, it is a place of Buddhist and Hindu worship and pilgrimage alike. This unusual co-existence of the two religious belief systems results from a two-fold identification of the main cult image as Avalokiteśvara or Śiva. I will aim to reconstruct the significance of the site for the cultural landscape of the Western Himalayas.

Public lecture by Dr. Lianming Wang: "Transoceanic Trade Repictured: Coromandel Lacquer Screen and the Mobile Image in Global Exchange." This talk responds to the ingenious concept of the ‘image vehicle’ (Bilderfahrzeuge) coined by Aby Warburg, highlighting its potential and valence for studying the global migration of the image. Departing from a Coromandel lacquer screen with the portrayal of the Dutch paying tribute, now kept in the National Museum of Denmark, Copenhagen, the discussion centers on the recurring theme of the transoceanic tributary trade found on a wide array of material surfaces.

Public lecture by Prof. Ryan R. Overbey: The Great Peahen Queen of Spells (Mahāmāyūrīvidyārājñī) is a dynamic Buddhist scripture containing lists of gods and demons, apotropaic spells, and protective rituals. This scripture and its artistic manifestations grew over time, with various forms of Mahāmāyūrī emerging in South, Central, and East Asia from the early centuries CE up to the present. In this lecture we will explore two aspects of the development of the Māhāmāyūrī corpus over time. First, we will examine the ways images of Mahāmāyūrī transformed as they moved from South to Central and East Asia. Second, we will investigate some ritual manuals and visualization instructions extant in Chinese, Sanskrit, and Tibetan sources. Comparison of these materials will allow us think critically about the relationship between art and ritual in the Buddhist traditions. Picture: Tokyo National Museum, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Lecture by Prof. Dr. Finbarr Barry Flood: Asymmetrical Dependencies in a Maritime Cosmopolis: Reading a Medieval Iraqi Image Cycle. One of the most celebrated extant medieval Arabic manuscripts is an illustrated copy of the Maqāmāt (Assemblies) of Abu Muhmmad al-Qasim ibn ‘Ali al-Hariri (d. 516H/1122 CE), a popular text subject to frequent copying. Many of the images in the 634/1237 copy of the Maqāmāt exceed its specifications, extending the purview of the text in ways that reflect the impact of oral and textual lore concerning the Indian Ocean. My talk will focus on the most extensive image cycle within the manuscript, which narrates a sea voyage and shipwreck on a mysterious island. It will explore the ways in which various kinds of asymmetrical dependencies are depicted in the images.

Lecture by Dr. Sidh Losa Mendiratta: As civilizations’ most complex material expressions, cities have flourished and withered over the centuries. Among the world’s ruined cities, Old Goa holds a unique place. Following its thriving development as the Estado da Índia’s main port city during the 16th century, this cosmopolitan and commercial hub entered a long period of decline, mirroring the woes of the Portuguese Empire. In this presentation, I will describe how Old Goa’s archaeological and heritage structures were perceived from the late 19th century onwards, and how some of them were preserved and used during the final years of Portuguese colonial rule. Highlighting the handful of archaeological excavations in Old Goa, I will address how recent research allows us to form a clearer picture of the erstwhile port city, and to reassess its significance, not only for the fields of Architectural and Urban History, but also for the larger narratives of Asian/European cultural encounters.

Online conference by the Department of Asian and Islamic Art History, University of Bonn (Germany) and the School of Arts, University of Roehampton (UK). Welcome address – 2:00 pm (UK), 3:00 pm (Germany), 6:30 pm (India): University of Roehampton: Prof. Ann R. David University of Bonn: Prof. Dr. Julia A. B. Hegewald and Prof. Dr. Claudia Wenzel. Panel 1: Chair: Arunima J R, Speakers: Sandra Jasmin Schlage (University of Bonn, Germany), Anuradha Ramesh (VISTAS, Chennai, India), Giridhar Raghunathan (University of Roehampton, UK). Panel 2: Chair: Aryamba Sriram, Speakers: Dr. Varada Pandit (University of Mumbai, India), Shambik Ghose (Leeds Beckett University, UK). Panel 3: Chair: Sripadma Ganapathi, Speakers: Dr. Swetha Sundaran Mangalath (St. Aloysius College, Mangalore, India), Dr. Ayla Joncheere (Ghent University, Belgium). Keynote by Dr. Avanthi Meduri, Reader, School of Arts, University of Roehampton, UK: 5: 15 pm (UK), 6:15 pm (Germany), 9:45 pm (India).