Unpacking Provenance | A Himalayan Phurba
In this webinar, a panel of four experts discusses a Himalayan phurba, a ceremonial dagger in the collections of the Ethnologisches Museum (Ethnological Museum) in Berlin. The phurba left the Himalayan region and entered a private collection in Germany at an unknown point in time and was sold to the museum in 1931 by its previous owner. Panelists will consider questions about and approaches to researching its origin, its journey, and its significance within spiritual traditions of the Himalayan region.
The online series Unpacking Provenance: Retracing the Histories of Asian Art brings together cross-disciplinary specialists to discuss provenance research processes and share resources. Discussions focus on a single object, exploring a variety of innovative, strategic, and collaborative approaches to inquiry.
Unpacking Provenance is part of a larger collaboration between the Smithsonian Institution and the Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz that seeks to cultivate the global network of provenance researchers…
Event Location: Zoom. Cost: Free. Register in advance (required). Get Tickets/Register: https://smithsonian.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_kA35g5nGTqCyt1OmIiE_Vg. Categories: Lectures & Discussions. Webcasts & Online. Accessibility: Captioning.
Tuesday, March 10, 2026, 10:00 AM – 11:15 AM.
Persian Cinema: Poetry and Protest
In this online talk, curator of film Tom Vick presents an insider’s view of the annual Festival of Films from Iran at the National Museum of Asian Art, which just concluded its thirtieth year. The festival showcases a selection of the best Iranian and diasporic films of the year. Vick will discuss Iranian cinema’s preservation of cultural traditions, its central role in contemporary Iran, and its commitment to exposing social injustices.
The talk will be followed by a Q&A and discussion moderated by Massumeh Farhad, The Ebrahimi Family Curator of Persian, Arab, and Turkish Art, Director of the Freer Research Center, and the Senior Associate Director for Research.
Tom Vick has served as curator of film at NMAA since 2001. Formerly, Vick was the coordinator of film programs at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. He has worked as a consultant for the International Film Festival Rotterdam and served on the juries of the Korean Film Festival in Los Angeles, the Fantasia International Film Festival in Montreal,…
Event Location: Zoom. Cost: Free. Register in advance (required). Get Tickets/Register: https://smithsonian.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_OS_v9krhQzyQGIcxAB-C3Q#/registration. Categories: Lectures & Discussions. Webcasts & Online. Accessibility: Captioning.
Tuesday, March 17, 2026, 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM.
Conservation Cart Talk | Caring for Japanese Tea Utensils
It’s not every day that a museum cares for a collection still actively used in traditional tea practice—an exciting opportunity that also raises unique conservation questions.
Join art conservator Ellen Chase, along with curatorial assistant and tea practitioner Ayumi Nelson, to explore how we preserve Japanese tea utensils we use in tea gatherings (such as the upcoming chanoyu presentation). Learn how this compares to the way we treat utensils intended for display.
Examine sample ceramic and lacquer pieces, and get a feel for the conservation materials involved—from sponges and swabs to adhesives and pigments. Afterwards, step inside the exhibition Reasons to Gather to explore related tea objects on display. Image: National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Venue: Asian Art Museum, West Building. Building: West Building. Event Location: Gallery 8. Cost: Free. Register in advance (optional). Get Tickets/Register: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1983973359726?aff=oddtdtcreator. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Lectures & Discussions. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible. Assisted listening devices.
Friday, March 20, 2026, 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM.
Public Chanoyu Presentation with Urasenke Tankokai Washington DC and Artist DG Smalling
Witness a public presentation of a traditional Japanese practice of tea preparation called chanoyu, featuring tea utensils from the museum’s collection. This is our third annual, public chanoyu presentation with the Urasenke Tankokai Washington DC Association. Tea will not be served to audience members during this presentation.
The 2026 program marks a significant expansion of this annual event. For the first time, the event will feature a koicha (thick tea) presentation in the museum’s largest indoor venue, the Meyer Auditorium.
Master Artist DG Smalling (Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma) expands the program with a creative collaboration. Smalling will create live, continuous-line drawings of the presentation in his signature single-line style. He draws upon the historic practice of kaiki (record of a gathering), associated with sixteenth-century tea masters such as Tsuda Sōgyū. His participation celebrates the enduring spirit of US-Japan cultural exchange on the occasion of the 250th anniversary of the…
Venue: Asian Art Museum, West Building. Building: West Building. Event Location: Meyer Auditorium. Cost: Free. Register in advance (required). Get Tickets/Register: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1982898938102?aff=oddtdtcreator. Categories: Lectures & Discussions. Demonstrations. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Saturday, March 28, 2026, 1:00 PM – 2:30 PM.
Artist Talk: Hiroshi Senju
Hear internationally recognized painter Hiroshi Senju talk about his artistic process in person on the opening day of Into the Waters with Senju and Bingyi: Two Contemporary Paintings.
Senju is known for his ethereal waterfall paintings, which can be found in art collections globally and in public spaces like Tokyo’s Haneda Airport, the US Embassy in Tokyo, the Buddhist monastery on Mount Kōya, and the Embassy of Japan in Washington, DC. He has traveled around the world to study waterfalls and distills their essence using mineral-based pigments that have been a staple of Japanese painting for centuries.
After the talk, Curator of Japanese Art Frank Feltens joins Senju for a conversation and audience Q&A.
To celebrate the exhibition opening and program, the galleries will remain open until 6:30 p.m. so attendees can experience these two dynamic artworks before the start of the artist talk. Image ©️ Senju Studio, LLC.
Venue: Asian Art Museum, West Building. Building: West Building. Event Location: Meyer Auditorium. Cost: Free. Register in advance (recommended). Categories: After Five. Lectures & Discussions. Webcasts & Online. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Thursday, April 2, 2026, 6:30 PM – 7:30 PM.
American Council for Southern Asian Art (ACSAA) Symposium XXII: Keynote Panel and Reception
Keynote panel and reception: Thursday, May 7, 4–8 p.m. EDT
Symposium: Friday, May 8–Saturday, May 9, 10 a.m.–6:30 p.m. EDT
Curator-led tours: Sunday, May 10, 10 a.m.–12 p.m. EDT
The American Council for Southern Asian Art (ACSAA) Symposium XXII will be hosted by the Freer Research Center in Washington, DC, on May 7–10, 2026.
The symposium begins on the afternoon of May 7 with a keynote panel and reception. On May 8–9, the program will continue with two full days of in-person talks and discussions. We will conclude on May 10 with curator-led gallery tours.
Keynote Panel: In the Realms of Friendship: Emotion, Devotion, and Status in the Visual Arts Vidya Dehejia , Annapurna Garimella , Heidi Pauwels , Molly Emma Aitken, ACSAA symposia are opportunities to meet our colleagues, reconnect with mentors and graduate school cohorts, and share one’s current research with the field. Occurring every two years and hosted by academic institutions and museums, often in conjunction with major exhibitions, ACSAA symposia…
Venue: Asian Art Museum, West Building. Building: West Building. Event Location: Freer Courtyard, Meyer Auditorium. Cost: Free. Register in advance (required). Get Tickets/Register: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/american-council-for-southern-asian-art-acsaa-symposium-xxii-tickets-1980384718002?aff=ebdssbdestsearch. Categories: Lectures & Discussions. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Thursday, May 7, 2026, 4:00 PM – 8:00 PM.
American Council for Southern Asian Art (ACSAA) Symposium XXII: Day 1
Keynote panel and reception: Thursday, May 7, 4–8 p.m. EDT
Symposium: Friday, May 8–Saturday, May 9, 10 a.m.–6:30 p.m. EDT
Curator-led tours: Sunday, May 10, 10 a.m.–12 p.m. EDT
The American Council for Southern Asian Art (ACSAA) Symposium XXII will be hosted by the Freer Research Center in Washington, DC, on May 7–10, 2026.
The symposium begins on the afternoon of May 7 with a keynote panel and reception. On May 8–9, the program will continue with two full days of in-person talks and discussions. We will conclude on May 10 with curator-led gallery tours.
ACSAA symposia are opportunities to meet our colleagues, reconnect with mentors and graduate school cohorts, and share one’s current research with the field. Occurring every two years and hosted by academic institutions and museums, often in conjunction with major exhibitions, ACSAA symposia are one of the primary ways that members gather, share ideas, and participate in the ACSAA community. To learn more about ACSAA, its current board members, and its…
Venue: Asian Art Museum, West Building. Building: West Building. Event Location: Meyer Auditorium. Cost: Free. Register in advance (required). Get Tickets/Register: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/american-council-for-southern-asian-art-acsaa-symposium-xxii-tickets-1980384718002?aff=ebdssbdestsearch. Categories: Lectures & Discussions. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Friday, May 8, 2026, 10:00 AM – 6:30 PM.
American Council for Southern Asian Art (ACSAA) Symposium XXII: Day 2
Keynote panel and reception: Thursday, May 7, 4–8 p.m. EDT
Symposium: Friday, May 8–Saturday, May 9, 10 a.m.–6:30 p.m. EDT
Curator-led tours: Sunday, May 10, 10 a.m.–12 p.m. EDT
The American Council for Southern Asian Art (ACSAA) Symposium XXII will be hosted by the Freer Research Center in Washington, DC, on May 7–10, 2026.
The symposium begins on the afternoon of May 7 with a keynote panel and reception. On May 8–9, the program will continue with two full days of in-person talks and discussions. We will conclude on May 10 with curator-led gallery tours.
ACSAA symposia are opportunities to meet our colleagues, reconnect with mentors and graduate school cohorts, and share one’s current research with the field. Occurring every two years and hosted by academic institutions and museums, often in conjunction with major exhibitions, ACSAA symposia are one of the primary ways that members gather, share ideas, and participate in the ACSAA community. To learn more about ACSAA, its current board members, and its…
Venue: Asian Art Museum, West Building. Building: West Building. Event Location: Meyer Auditorium. Cost: Free. Register in advance (required). Get Tickets/Register: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/american-council-for-southern-asian-art-acsaa-symposium-xxii-tickets-1980384718002?aff=ebdssbdestsearch. Categories: Lectures & Discussions. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Saturday, May 9, 2026, 10:00 AM – 6:30 PM.
American Council for Southern Asian Art (ACSAA) Symposium XXII: Curator-led Tours
These tours are part of the American Council for Southern Asian Art (ACSAA) Symposium XXII. ACSAA membership is required to attend. Join or renew your ACSAA membership.
To conclude the symposium, our curators will lead tours of two exhibitions at the museum. Debra Diamond will lead tours of Of the Hills: Pahari Paintings from India’s Himalayan Kingdoms at 10 and 11 a.m. , Emma Natalya Stein will lead tours of Vishnu’s Cosmic Ocean at 10 and 11 a.m. For more information, please visit the program page or email FreerResearchCenter@si.edu. Image: Procession of musicians, ceremonial textile (detail); India, Gujarat state, for the Indonesian market, 16th–17th century; block-printed plain-weave cotton (mordant- and resist-dyed); National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution, Freer Collection, Purchase—Pettit Foundation South Asia and India Fund and the Elizabeth B. Moynihan Fund, F2025.2.1.
Venue: Asian Art Museum, East Building. Building: East Building. Event Location: Arthur M. Sackler Gallery. Cost: Free. Register in advance (required). Get Tickets/Register: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/american-council-for-southern-asian-art-acsaa-symposium-xxii-tickets-1980384718002?aff=ebdssbdestsearch. Categories: Lectures & Discussions. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Sunday, May 10, 2026, 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM.