Asian Collection
As one of the largest and finest collections of its kind in the southeastern United States, the Harn Museum’s Asian art collection spans more than 4,500 years of history across Asia, the world’s largest and most populated continent. With particular strengths in ceramics, jade carvings, prints, paintings, and stone sculptures, the collection comprises approximately 4,000 works from China, Korea, Japan, the Himalayas, South and Southeast Asia, and Central Asia. Highlights include traditional and modern Japanese prints, 19th-century Chinese and Korean ink paintings, as well as Hindu and Buddhist sculptures and folk art from the Indian subcontinent. In recent years, the collection has expanded to embrace modern and contemporary works that not only reinterpret tradition through new media and innovative techniques but also actively engage with global art movements. The Harn’s Asian art collection serves as an essential resource for the university and broader community to foster meaningful connections to rich Asian artistic heritage and dynamic cross-cultural exchanges.
More about the Asian Collection
Asian art has been an integral part of the University of Florida’s collection since the establishment of the University Gallery in the 1970s. Gifts from pioneering Indian art professor Dr. Roy C. Craven (1924-1996), General James A. Van Fleet (1892-1992), and Dr. Don Q. Vining (1938-2016) to the University Gallery laid the foundation for what would become the Asian art collection of the Harn Museum of Art when it opened in 1990. Dr. David Cofrin (1923-2009) and Mary Ann Harn Cofrin (1924-2022) were instrumental in expanding both the collection and the museum through its David A. Cofrin Asian Art Wing in the decades that followed. Over the past 35 years, the collection has grown substantially through active acquisitions and the continuing generosity of donors from Florida and beyond. Today, the Asian art collection plays an indispensable role in fostering a deeper understanding and appreciation of Asian art, history, and culture through a variety of exhibitions and outreach programs.
Highlights
- The Japanese art collection is one of the most significant components of the Harn’s Asian art holdings, and is particularly strong in traditional woodblock prints by artists such as Utagawa Hiroshige 歌川 広重 (1797–1858) and Utagawa Kunisada 歌川 国貞 (1786–1865), as well as ceramics representing all major Japanese kilns. A major gift in 2024 of 337 modern and contemporary prints from Jerry and Anne Godsey has greatly enriched this collection. The donation includes works by celebrated print masters like Yoshitoshi Mori 森義利 (1898-1992), Mizufune Rokushi 水船六洲 (1912-1980), Watanabe Sadao 渡辺禎雄 (1913-1996), Takahashi Rikio 高橋利郎 (1917-1999), and Maki Haku 巻白 (1924-2000), along with prominent contemporary artists such as Funasaka Yoshishuke 船坂芳助 (b. 1939), Imamura Yoshio 今村義雄 (b. 1948), and Takeshi Hara 原健 (b. 1942). Notably, it also highlights esteemed female print artists Iwami Reika 岩見禮花 (1927-2020) and Shinoda Toko 篠田桃紅 (1913-2021).
- The Chinese art collection stands out as the most diverse among the Harn’s Asian art holdings, distinguished by the wide range of media, artists, and historical periods it represents. Highlights include painted earthenware from the Neolithic period (c. 5000-3000 BCE), a bronze gui once part of the 18th-century imperial collection, and exquisite jade carvings and lacquer ware from the late imperial era. The collection also features ink paintings in various formats dating from the 17th to the 20th centuries, showcasing the work of prominent painters such as Sheng Maoye 盛茂燁 (c. 1580-c. 1640), Shen Quan 沈銓 (1682-1762), Ren Xiong 任熊 (1835-1893), Wu Changshi 吳昌碩 (1844-1927), and Qi Baishi 齊白石 (1864-1957).
- The Korean art collection features important paintings by renowned artists such as Kim Hong-do 김홍도 金弘道 (1745-c. 1806), Kin Un-ho 김은호 金殷鎬 (1892-1979), Shin Yoonbok 신윤복 申潤福 (1758-1813), and An Jungsik 안중식 安中植 (1861-1919). It also includes Goryeo dynasty (918-1392) celadon wares in a variety of forms. A highlight of the collection is a 17th-century Seated Bodhisattva, which holds significant artistic and religious value not only for the sophisticated techniques used in its creation but also for the Buddhist sutras found within the sculpture.
- The South Asian collection features religious works representing both Hinduism and Buddhism from across the south Indian continent. Highlights include a Seated Buddha from Gandhara and a sandstone sculpture of a Four-Faced Vishnu. The painting collection encompasses both traditional manuscript illustrations and modern works by notable artists Jamini Roy (1887-1972), Krishna Shamrao Kulkarni (1916-1994), and Sunil Madhav Sen (1910-1979).
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