Ten Grotenhuis, Elizabeth, ed. Along the silk road.Univ. of Washington Press. 144p. illus. map. bibliog. index. c2002. 0-295-98182-2. $24.95. SA This enchanting book is filled with the romance of an exotic place with a long, multicultural history. For many centuries, the Silk Road Silk Road Ancient trade route that linked China with Europe. Originally a caravan route and used from c. 100 BC, the 4,000-mi (6,400-km) road started in Xi'an, China, followed the Great Wall to the northwest, climbed the Pamir Mtns. was the most cosmopolitan region of the world, thriving on the caravan trade that spread religions as well as silk and other goods throughout the area. The Freer Gallery of Art The Freer Gallery of Art is the Smithsonian Institution's museum of East Asian art, including art from China, Korea, Japan, South Asia (India), and southeast Asia, as well as American art. It opened to the general public in 1923. and the Arthur M. Sacklet Gallery of the Smithsonian Institution joined the Silk Road Project Silk Road Project, Inc. is a not-for-profit organization, initiated by acclaimed cellist Yo-Yo Ma in 1998, promoting collaboration among artists and institutions, promoting multicultural artistic exchange, and studying the ebb and flow of ideas among different cultures along the , Inc., a nonprofit organization Nonprofit Organization An association that is given tax-free status. Donations to a non-profit organization are often tax deductible as well. Notes: Examples of non-profit organizations are charities, hospitals and schools. founded by cellist Yo-Yo Ma, to produce this informative volume on Central Asian art and culture. The first chapter presents a conversation between Yo-Yo Ma and ethnomusicologist Theodore Levin about global musical traditions and the series of concerts sponsored by the Silk Road Project to infuse in·fuse v. 1. To steep or soak without boiling in order to extract soluble elements or active principles. 2. To introduce a solution into the body through a vein for therapeutic purposes. contemporary music of the region with traditional music. In other chapters, archeologist Elizabeth Barber discusses the history of Central Asian clothing, textiles, and rituals; art historian Elizabeth ten Grotenhuis focuses on a Japanese Star mandala--a pictorial image of Buddhist enlightenment--to reflect on Buddhist astrology and astronomy Astrology and astronomy are historically one and the same discipline (Latin: astrologia), and were only gradually recognized as separate in western 17th century philosophy (the "Age of Reason"). ; photographer Kenro Izu and art historian Debra Diamond present images of sacred sites along the Silk Road; material scientist Metton C. Flemings discusses the interchange of technology along the Silk Road throughout history; and film historian Hamid Naficy presents an overview of Iranian filmmaking and discusses the combination of Eastern and Western influences found in this newest artistic medium to spread across the Silk Road. Interspersed throughout the book are 90 beautiful reproductions of art works from major museum collections and archival photographs of important historical sites as well as photographs of performers, craftspeople crafts·people pl.n. People who practice a craft; artisans. , monasteries, and cave sites. A glossary, maps, a timeline, an annotated bibliography, and an extensive index all help to make this a thought-provoking and user-friendly volume. Rhonda Cooper, Dir., Univ. Art Gallery, Stony Brook, NY |
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