Welcome to a blog about Oriental art, artists, and where to enjoy it in the United Kingdom! The aim of this blog first is to discuss Oriental art and its relation to art elsewhere in the world. Asia is well known for its civilisations that are thousands of years old, which flourished in terms of art, culture, and science. Asia and Europe have always been in contact, even if the influence used to spread at a much slower pace. Likewise, Asian art has been influencing European and more generally, western art and vice versa. In this blog, we explore these connections, both generally, and in terms of individual artists who have contributed to this genre.
Oriental Artists
The second aim of the blog is to showcase and discuss famous and less famous Oriental artists, both historical figures as well as contemporary ones. Most people who live in Europe or the US are able to name several famous western artists, for example, Leonardo da Vinci, Rafael, van Gogh, Picasso, Jackson Pollock, and Andy Warhol. However, if you ask them about Oriental artists, few can name any. In this blog, we want to spread knowledge about Asian artists by discussing their work, artistic practice and styles, their personal lives, as well as the historical context in which they lived.
Where to See Oriental Art in the UK
If one is interested in Oriental art, it is obviously not enough merely to see pictures online and to read about the topic, no matter how educational that is. An essential part of being an art aficionado is to engage with art in the “real world” by seeing art. In this blog, we aim to keep our audience updated on the numerous possibilities of seeing Oriental art in the UK. Britain is a wonderful place to see art. London has some of the best museums in the world, and many of them have extensive collections of Oriental art in permanent displays.
Moreover, they regularly hold temporary exhibitions focusing on various cultures, genres or topics with Asian art. Besides the great museums, there are annual art fairs dedicated specifically to Asian art. There are also several galleries and institutions that showcase Oriental art, most notably the numerous cultural centres of Asian countries. Even though London is one of the great art capitals in the world, there are also several excellent museums outside of London where one can see Oriental art.