From February 6^th to June 6^th, the McMullen Museum of Art at Boston College is playing host to the acclaimed exhibition entitled Asian Journeys: Collecting Art in Post-War America.  Asia Society Museum in New York arranged for the exhibition, which features some of the greatest and most profound pieces of artwork that were drawn from the museum’s distinguished permanent collection, the Mr. And Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3^rd Collection.

On February 8^th, the public was invited to join in a free opening celebration in honor of the exhibit.  Guests were treated to free desert and coffee, as well as music from the 1950’s and 1960’s – courtesy of University jazz ensemble BC bOp!

Featured within the exhibit were fifty-six authentic pieces of artwork ranging from the end of the sixth century to the beginning of the nineteenth century, and derived from several different Asian cultures.  Most conspicuous were the sculptures and ceramic works that were from such regions as China, Japan, India and Vietnam.

John D. Rockefeller 3^rd founded the Asia Society in 1956 with the express intent of having a positive impact on international relations between Asia and America through the advancement of both cultural appreciation and mutual collaboration.  From 1963 to 1978, the Rockefellers teamed up with the famed art historian Sherman E. Lee in an attempt to amass the most impressive private collection of Asian art found within the United States.

Perhaps Adriana Proser, the John H. Foster Curator for Traditional Asian Art, summed it up best when she commented that, “Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3^rd, Dr. Sherman E. Lee and the extraordinary times they lived in provide us with intriguing subject matter for a study of the symbiotic connections between international politics, art collecting and art history.”

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