2b The Asian Art Museum of San Francisco

1Contains a title using the format listed above.

The Asian Art Museum of San Francisco
2Contains the sources you used with links to these sources .

http://www.asianart.org

wwwhttp://www.kqed.org
3Contains a brief paragraph how it connects to your study of humanities.

I believe many Californias' are very unfamiliar with the role of being Americas only mainland state with any real Asian population. Barring NYC Chinatown, Cali is really the only place on the mainland that offers any insight into the role of Asian Americans and Asian immigrants contributions to the west and America in general. I am not saying that all Asians live in California, but I have lived all over this country and and their impact here is vibrant and obvious. So we are lucky to have them here contributing to our society and each group of people that came here has a lot of cultural history that lies behind their title of immigrant or "Asian" so why not try to enjoy something besides rambling on about sushi and shallow topics that only scratch the surface of what all the various Asian cultures in our area has to offer.

4Contains the following "analytical elements":

Observation: What did you choose? What do you see or hear or feel or think of in the choice you made? What is the subject of the work? If you chose a 'thing' what is the work made of and what techniques (colors, lines, shapes, textures)does the creator use? Be specific in your description. If you chose a place, be specific in your description of what you see or hear. Talk to your reader as though they cannot see the item but somehow must draw a painting of what you see or hear.

Well, I chose the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco not because the building itself is overly impressive, but what is contained inside. Inside this museum you can be transported through all the various artist and cultural contributions that Asians have contributed to the world of art. Form Japanese Ukiyo-e, Chinese brush works, tea ceremony workshops that touch on several cultures interpretation of it, and much more. The art on display can be eye opening if one has not been exposed to it previously. I believe one can visit this museum and leave with the feeling that they have seen what the other half of the world has on offer. I mean even Monet was smitten by Japanese wood blocks and incorporated several traditionally Asian techniques in to his own works.

Interpretation: What is your choice about? Give specific examples to support this statement in 2 sentences; do so in a way that teaches us something about your choice. Make Paulo Freire proud!

My choice is about leaving your western minded assumptions behind and appreciating things without any predisposed mindset. Inside the museum you can view Monet's La Japonasie and see that the Eastern world does indeed have their own versions of artistic masters and that they even inspired some of our western masters.
CJudgment: What led you to your choice? What do you think or feel about this choice? Why do you feel this way? Support your thoughts with specific observations.

Well I went a few months back to view Yoshitoshi's One Hundred views of The Moon. It's an early Meiji era collection of beautifully created scenes that incorporate mythology with Japans natural beauty. I have been trying to put my own collection together for the last five years, but this can become a real financial burden so I just buy the pieces I can afford and go view the rest. I have the catalogs and books, but nothing can replace the feeling of viewing great art in person.

Questioning: What else would you like to know about this choice? When completing the question section, lead your audience into the question by stating a fact you do know, yet you still have the related question. This way, both your audience and you will have an educational experience.

I would really like to know how the museum came to be in possession of so many great collections. I have heard of several places (Boston MFA) that use less then respectful ways to acquire different pieces. Do you think that sometimes the national treasures of other societies should be returned to the country of origin? Is it really proper for us to have and hold other countries prized possessions and historically significant documents? I know that a lot of legitimate arrangements are made to borrow collection or to purchase them as well, but some purchases are made in back alley kind of situations(Egypt) which had the county of origins government been aware of this would have never allowed the work or piece to leave the country. I mean who owns such things?