Collection

This website gives information about the Denver Art Museum's Asian Art Department—past, present, and future. Its purpose is to reach friends from near and far who appreciate and enjoy Asian art. We hope that you will visit the Denver Art Museum in person and return to this website frequently.

The Denver Art Museum's Asian art collection originated in 1915 with a donation of Chinese and Japanese art objects and has broadened to include works from the entire Asian continent. Spanning a period from the fourth millennium BC to the present, these objects illustrate the wide-ranging achievements of Asian artists and artisans. The Asian art collection has grown principally through the generosity of donors whose gifts range from single objects to large collections.

In celebration of the Denver Art Museum's 100th anniversary, the Asian art galleries were fully reinstalled in 1993. The Jesse and Nellie Shwayder Galleries encompass 22,000 square feet of space and display changing selections from the museum's collection and loans. Geographic galleries are devoted to the arts of China, India, Japan, Korea, Southeast Asia, Southwest Asia, and Tibet and Nepal. Thematic galleries include objects associated with the Scholar's Tradition in East Asia, Everyday Traditions in South and Southeast Asia, and Buddhist Art.

Two additional galleries provide opportunities to explore particular aspects of Asian art in greater depth. The William Sharpless Jackson Jr. Gallery and the Sze Hong Gallery feature rotating exhibitions drawn from the museum's extensive holdings and other Asian art collections.

In addition to the Asian Art Department, other departments of the Denver Art Museum collect Asian art. Asian textiles from the Textile Art Department are shown in the Asian art galleries as well as the Neusteter Textile Gallery, and examples of Asian art are part of the departments of Architecture, Design & Graphics; Modern & Contemporary Art; and New World Art.


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