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May 2014: Plank Mask

Plank Mask, Yacouba Bonde, late 20th century The Bwa – an ethnic group of about 300,000 people who live in small villages and towns in the West African countries of […]

April 2014: Ganesha

Ganesha, Cambodian, 10th century In Hinduism, the god Ganesha both places and clears away obstacles. He appears frequently in all walks of Hindu life: by the roadside, in household shrines, […]

March 2014: Hamilton Folios

Etruscan, Greek, and Roman Antiquities from the Cabinet of the Honble William Hamilton, Baron Pierre d’Hancarville, 1766-1767 What is the value in collecting vases? In 1772, Sir William Hamilton sold […]

February 2014: Jizo Bosatsu

Jizō Bosatsu, Japanese, about 1100 One of the most beloved Buddhist deities in Japan, Jizō is a bosatsu (bodhisattva), one of a group of enlightened beings who choose to delay […]

January 2014: Looking Down Yosemite Valley, California

Looking Down Yosemite Valley, California, Albert Bierstadt, 1865 Albert Bierstadt’s adept handling of the brush, sensitivity to composition and color, and ability to capture the atmospheric qualities of light place him […]

December 2013: Jar

Jar, Vietnamese, 16th century This large ceramic jar is one of the most spectacular example of painted Vietnamese ware known. At just over two feet tall, it is exceptional not […]

November 2013: Chilkat Blanket

Chilkat Blanket, Native American, Tlingit people, 19th century A chilkat blanket is worn draped over the shoulders of chiefs or high-ranking men during important ceremonial occasions. The graphic, bold design […]

October 2013: Cup

Cup, colonial period Inca culture, 18th century Some traditions withstand the test of time – through generations, cultural changes, and even centuries of progress and modernization. Yet, these same outside […]

September 2013: I Am a Man

I Am a Man: Sanitation Workers Strike, Memphis, Tennessee, March 28th, 1968, Ernest Withers, 1968 After Ernest Withers (1922-2007) received his first camera in high school, he quickly began documenting […]

August 2013: Dawn

L’Aurore (Dawn), William-Adolphe Bouguereau, 1881 Dawn – early morning represented by a female figure reaching back to smell a blooming calla lily – exemplifies William-Adolphe Bouguereau’s standards of beauty and […]