Paper short abstract:

There is an ongoing discussion around the relationship between contemporary art and anthropology, often in the context of decolonization. Asian art, especially contemporary Asian art, however, presents a different challenge to curating exhibitions at anthropological museums.

Paper long abstract:

The Museum of Anthropology at the University of British Columbia or MOA is known for its Pacific Northwest Coast First Nations collections, but is perhaps less known as a museum of world arts and cultures. The Asian collection is the largest collection at the museum, about forty percent of the total holdings, but is given a small space within the permanent gallery. Special exhibitions and programs thus provide an alternative opportunity to introduce Asian arts and cultures at MOA. This paper focuses on two exhibitions on Asia I have curated since I started working at MOA in 2014.

Since many Asian cultures possess highly developed artistic traditions of their own, such production was until recently considered a matter for art historians rather than anthropologists. Asian art, especially contemporary Asian art presents a different challenge to curating exhibitions at anthropological museums.