Buddhism, like many religions, has had a complex relationship with women.Although women received ordination as early as the sixth century BCE, when Mahapajapati Gotami, Buddha’s maternal aunt and adoptive mother, became the first bhikkhuni nun, a number of early texts prescribed that it was impossible for them to attain Buddhahood because their bodies were not considered complete entities capable of enlightenment.This notion persisted in various forms as the religion spread to Southeast Asia and China, before making its way to Korea in the fourth century, and later to Japan.However, that did not mean women were entirely absent from Buddhist traditions in East Asia — or from its art.In painted scrolls and statues, they appeared as mothers and nurturers, as Avalokitesvara, or “Gwaneum” in Korean, the bodhisattva of compassion, and as female guardian deities. While such depictions largely mirrored the gender norms and roles of the time, they occasionally transcended these constraints.And more importantly, they were an active, albeit much less-known, force behind the production and advancement of Buddhist art itself — both as devout practitioners and influential patrons.
“Unsullied, Like a Lotus in Mud” at the Hoam Museum of Art in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, is a groundbreaking exhibition that, for the first time in the world, revisits centuries-old Buddhist art of Korea, China and Japan through the specific lens of gender.“In ancient Buddhist paintings, our attention is often drawn to the splendid figures of the Buddha and bodhisattvas, shimmering in gold, exuding delicacy and dignity. However, this show aims to highlight the presence of countless women beyond that golden brilliance,” Lee Seung-hye, the show’s curator, explained in a recent press preview at the museum.This blockbuster exhibition features 92 treasured paintings, statues, scriptures and embroideries from 27 collections worldwide, making it an exceptionally rare event.In fact, more than half of these artifacts, hailing from New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, the British Museum, the Tokyo National Museum and the National Museum of Korea, among others, are being displayed in Korea for the first time.The show also marks a brief yet remarkable homecoming of a seventh-century gilt-bronze standing Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva statue from the Baekje Kingdom (18 BCE–660 CE). The 28-centimeter-tall sculpture of an enlightened being with a mysterious smile was last seen in its homeland in 1929 before being taken to Japan by a collector. In 2018, the Cultural Heritage Administration attempted to repatriate the relic for 4.2 billion won ($3.08 million) 메이저 but ultimately fell short of the owner’s demand for 15 billion won.