| The following article is from the Spring, 1999 issue of the Snow Lion Newsletter and is for historical reference only. You can see this in context of the original newsletter here. |
A Collaborative Project of the University of Massachusetts and the Springfield Museums
Kathmandu is an artistic interpretation of a Nepali-Tibetan Temple that will be shown as progressive exhibits in Hampden Gallery on the University of Massachusetts campus before touring a variety of museums, galleries and community centers. After showing the Green Tara and Black Mahakala Shrine Rooms in Spring 99, Hampden Gallery will exhibit the Shakyamuni Buddha Shrine and other components in Fall 99. The first exhibition with all of the rooms complete and shown together will be at the George Walter Vincent Smith Art Museum in Springfield in conjunction with the exhibition The Mystical Arts of Tibet (2/2-4/30/ 2000) and a Mandala Sand Painting (2/20-4/30/ 2000) at the Museum of Fine Arts. Kathmandu (2/2-4/30/2000) will also serve as a three-dimensional backdrop for performances, demonstrations, school programs, symposia and other educational activities that will take place during the periods when the exhibition is on public view.
Kathmandu is a multi-faceted community-based project which actively involves well-known area artists and schoolchildren from Springfield's elementary and secondary schools while demonstrating the commitment of the University of Massachusetts, the Springfield Museums and the Springfield Schools to provide effective outreach, multicultural education and innovative learning for students involved with the project.
The first component of the exhibition Kathmandu was the installation of the Green Tara Shrine Room: a Work in Progress (Feb 1-21,1998) in the Hampden Gallery. The Shrine Room is a freestanding temple building with a life-size Green Tara sculpture and a 12 diameter mandala ceiling.
The second component of the exhibition Kathmandu will be the installation of the Black Mahakala Shrine Room: a Work in Progress in the Hampden Gallery. A seven-foot-tall, six-armed wrathful deity (Mahakala) will be constructed by John Simpson, Thomas Matsuda, Tenzin Rigdhen, graduate students, undergraduates and volunteers to be the centerpiece of this shrine room.
For more information, contact John Simpson, (413) 545-3394 or e-mail: [email protected]
Green Tara (Photo: Joan Simpson)
Black Mahakala Shrine Room (Photo: Peter McDonald)