Unknown
Avalokiteshvara (Guanyin), the Bodhisattva of Compassiondated 1398, Ming dynasty

On view:

Resnick Pavilion, floor 1

Hanging scroll painting of a large enthroned Buddhist deity in gold robes, surrounded by concentric halos, ornate tiered throne, and small attendant figures, on a dark background

Hanging scroll painting on dark ground depicting a symmetrical palatial shrine gateway with red pillars, gold-and-red tiered roofline, and circular medallion decorations; a large rainbow arc in red and green occupies the lower half, with cloud or vine forms extending outward; worn and cracked surface with visible age damage.

Hanging scroll depicting a multi-tiered ceremonial platform or altar in bird's-eye perspective, rendered in rich red, green, and gold with intricate decorative details, ornamental canopy above, and auspicious clouds in blue and coral at the edges; columns of Chinese calligraphy in lower right corner.

Hanging scroll painting on fabric depicting a bodhisattva seated in frontal view, wearing an elaborate jeweled crown and ornate necklaces, surrounded by a large golden halo and layered mandorla in green and red. Gold pigment, mineral colors, and fine detail work throughout.

Fragment of textile or paper with columns of Chinese calligraphy in black ink, enclosed within a red-orange rectangular border, on an aged, discolored ground with muted ochre and gray tones.

Fragment of a painted textile or manuscript on cloth, showing a close-up detail of draped hands or feet rendered in gray-brown tones with gold outlining, against an olive and red ground with geometric gold lattice pattern at lower edge and red curvilinear borders; paint surface heavily abraded.

Handwritten Japanese document in brush calligraphy on aged cream paper, with vertical columns of semi-cursive script and two smaller notations at left margin.

Artist or Maker: Unknown
Title: Avalokiteshvara (Guanyin), the Bodhisattva of Compassion
Culture: Chinese
Place Made: China
Date Made: dated 1398, Ming dynasty
Period: Ming dynasty
Medium: Hanging scroll, ink, gold leaf, and color on silk
Dimensions: Image: 68 1/4 x 25 1/4 in. (173.4 x 64.1 cm); Mount: 87 x 31 1/2 in. (221 x 80 cm); Roller width: 33 7/8 in. (86 cm)
Credit Line: Gift of Robert W. Moore in honor of Mary Moore
Accession Number: M.2000.13
Classification: Paintings
Collecting Area: Chinese and Korean Art
Curatorial Notes: This hanging scroll depicts one of the most popular Buddhist deities in East Asia, Guanyin (Sk. Avalokiteshvara), Bodhisattva of Compassion, and is painted in astonishing detail in ink, colors, and gold on silk. The work was initially believed to be a Korean painting of the early Joseon dynasty (1392–1910). That it had spent several centuries in Japan was clear from both the antique Japanese silk brocade mounting and the presence of an inscription on the back indicating that the painting was remounted in Japan in 1826, after having been recorded earlier in a 1655 inventory. Only after it entered LACMA’s collection was the scroll studied by several Korean and Chinese Buddhist painting specialists, all of whom agreed that its origins are Chinese. This situation often occurs in East Asian Buddhist painting, as Chinese originals were often copied with great faithfulness in both Korea and Japan, since transmitting the proportions and other details of a sacred painting was key to preserving its spiritual efficacy.

What led to the reattribution from Korea to China? First, the painting’s short dedicatory inscription, written in a cartouche in the lower right corner, mentions the first Ming emperor, whose reign title was Hongwu, and states that the scroll was painted in the thirty-first year of his rule (1398). While a key detail in terms of the work’s date, this alone does not prove its Chinese provenance, for Chinese reign titles were widely used in Korea during the Joseon dynasty. Second, the dedication mentions that the painting was commissioned by a group of female Buddhist lay practitioners in a town called Fenglin xiang (Phoenix Grove Village). While there is a well-known Buddhist temple named Phoenix Grove in Korea, no such village or town exists there, whereas one does exist in China, located in Anhui Province. Third, the presence of the jeweled canopy over the bodhisattva’s head, the lavender pigment in his robe, and the use of gold leaf are unusual features in Korean Buddhist painting and much more typical of Chinese Buddhist painting.

Stephen Little

2024
Selected Bibliography: Wilson, J. Keith. "Korean Art at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art." in Korean Art: Articles from Orientations 1970-2013, edited by Yifawn Lee and Jason Steuber, 428-35. Hong Kong: Orientations Magazine Ltd, 2014.
Little, Stephen. An Introduction to Chinese Paintings in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Los Angeles: Art Catalogues; LACMA, 2017.
Steuber, Jason and Allysa B. Peyton, eds. Arts of Korea: Histories, Challenges, and Perspectives. Gainesville: University of Florida Press, 2018.
Little, Stephen, and Tushara Bindu Gude. Realms of the Dharma: Buddhist Art across Asia. Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 2025.

Unknown
Avalokiteshvara (Guanyin), the Bodhisattva of Compassiondated 1398, Ming dynasty

On view:

Resnick Pavilion, floor 1

Artist or Maker: Unknown
Title: Avalokiteshvara (Guanyin), the Bodhisattva of Compassion
Culture: Chinese
Place Made: China
Date Made: dated 1398, Ming dynasty
Period: Ming dynasty
Medium: Hanging scroll, ink, gold leaf, and color on silk
Dimensions: Image: 68 1/4 x 25 1/4 in. (173.4 x 64.1 cm); Mount: 87 x 31 1/2 in. (221 x 80 cm); Roller width: 33 7/8 in. (86 cm)
Credit Line: Gift of Robert W. Moore in honor of Mary Moore
Accession Number: M.2000.13
Classification: Paintings
Collecting Area: Chinese and Korean Art
Curatorial Notes: This hanging scroll depicts one of the most popular Buddhist deities in East Asia, Guanyin (Sk. Avalokiteshvara), Bodhisattva of Compassion, and is painted in astonishing detail in ink, colors, and gold on silk. The work was initially believed to be a Korean painting of the early Joseon dynasty (1392–1910). That it had spent several centuries in Japan was clear from both the antique Japanese silk brocade mounting and the presence of an inscription on the back indicating that the painting was remounted in Japan in 1826, after having been recorded earlier in a 1655 inventory. Only after it entered LACMA’s collection was the scroll studied by several Korean and Chinese Buddhist painting specialists, all of whom agreed that its origins are Chinese. This situation often occurs in East Asian Buddhist painting, as Chinese originals were often copied with great faithfulness in both Korea and Japan, since transmitting the proportions and other details of a sacred painting was key to preserving its spiritual efficacy.

What led to the reattribution from Korea to China? First, the painting’s short dedicatory inscription, written in a cartouche in the lower right corner, mentions the first Ming emperor, whose reign title was Hongwu, and states that the scroll was painted in the thirty-first year of his rule (1398). While a key detail in terms of the work’s date, this alone does not prove its Chinese provenance, for Chinese reign titles were widely used in Korea during the Joseon dynasty. Second, the dedication mentions that the painting was commissioned by a group of female Buddhist lay practitioners in a town called Fenglin xiang (Phoenix Grove Village). While there is a well-known Buddhist temple named Phoenix Grove in Korea, no such village or town exists there, whereas one does exist in China, located in Anhui Province. Third, the presence of the jeweled canopy over the bodhisattva’s head, the lavender pigment in his robe, and the use of gold leaf are unusual features in Korean Buddhist painting and much more typical of Chinese Buddhist painting.

Stephen Little

2024
Selected Bibliography: Wilson, J. Keith. "Korean Art at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art." in Korean Art: Articles from Orientations 1970-2013, edited by Yifawn Lee and Jason Steuber, 428-35. Hong Kong: Orientations Magazine Ltd, 2014.
Little, Stephen. An Introduction to Chinese Paintings in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Los Angeles: Art Catalogues; LACMA, 2017.
Steuber, Jason and Allysa B. Peyton, eds. Arts of Korea: Histories, Challenges, and Perspectives. Gainesville: University of Florida Press, 2018.
Little, Stephen, and Tushara Bindu Gude. Realms of the Dharma: Buddhist Art across Asia. Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 2025.