On the way to the Tokyo National Museum I saw this, the Burgher's of Calais on a pedestal! at the entrance to the Tokyo National Museum of Western Art.
I was on my way to see the Sri Lanka, land of Serendipity exhibition. An exhibition of statues of buddha spanning the kingdom of the Singhalese. Without going into the details of Sri Lanka's history the exhibition showcased statues of buddha made from the 3rd century onwards. Seeing the oldest statue was 2000 years old, it was surprising to find little change in the image from then till the most recent exhibit, aged 200 years old. All the buddha's looked quite identical until the second revival of buddhism in the emerald isle - when the faces became rounder and the folds in the robes more numerous.
The one my most favourite bronze was a Saiva Saint, Karaikkal Ammaiyar. When her husband discovered he was married to a saint, he left her. Abandoned and devastated she began worshipping Siva. The statue depicts her holding cymbals which she is using while they dance. While worshipping Siva she turns into an ugly old woman. This is the ugly old woman:
Isnt she utterly beautiful and modern?
