Norton Simon Museum of Art (Venue Partner)
411 West Colorado Blvd
626-449-6840
This event has passed.
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Hayagriva, 17th century, Tibet or Mongolia. Courtesy of the Jennifer Jones Simon Art Trust
- When
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Aug 14, 2009 – June 28, 2010
Mondays (noon–6pm)
Wednesdays–Thursdays (noon–6pm)
Fridays (noon–9pm)
Saturdays–Sundays (noon–6pm)
- Where
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Directions: Located on the corner of Orange Grove and Colorado at the intersection of the 210 and 134 freeways
- Price
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$8
- Links
“Severed heads, skulls and daggers brimming with blood, and cemeteries littered with dismembered corpses may not readily invoke visions of spiritual attainment; however these are the essential images, accoutrements, and contexts of the warrior class of Buddhist deities. Contrasting with the omnipresent portrayals of the placid Buddha, Divine Demons is fascinating and thoughtfully culled by Christine Knoke, assembling ancient and modern manifestations of these heavily-armed, fiery, and fanged gods depicted in thangkas, rare mandalas, and ornately bedecked statuettes. Despite their frightful appearances and intense warrior stances, these ferocious gods are friends, not foes, of spiritual seekers. Their job is to rid the pious path of obstacles that impede enlightenment. Also exhibited are physical examples of their spiritual weaponry, used in religious rituals to further banish bad juju.”
A. McLean Emenegger, Flavorpill
Visitors to the Norton Simon Museum are accustomed to viewing peaceful, benevolent Buddhist deities, such as smiling Buddhas deep in meditation or serenely blissful bodhisattvas beckoning to us. But scattered throughout the Asian galleries is a striking assortment of demonic, wrathful deities—figures that bare fangs, drink blood, wear garlands of severed heads or are surrounded by fiery haloes. Divine Demons: Wrathful Deities of Buddhist Art, an intimate exhibition of paintings, sculptures and ceremonial ritual objects from the Museum’s permanent collection, explores this fascinating theme.
