ChinaFest! Year of the Wood Sheep

Sat, Jan 3, 11 am – 3 pm

Museum-wide

Celebrate longevity, the New Year, and treasures from the Forbidden City while exploring Chinese culture. Participate in a LEGO® reproduction of the Imperial Palace nine dragon screen and nine imperial treasure-making activities. Take in nine Chinese animated films for children, breathe and stretch with Project Yoga Richmond, and be amazed by martial arts demonstrations. Also…

Minh Martin

Virginia Glass Blowing Artist: Minh Martin of Romeo Glass

Sat – Sun, Dec 6 – 7, 11 am – 4 pm

VMFA Shop

Born in Viet Nam, Minh Martin studied geophysics at Yale University and then apprenticed with The Great Bri’oni, a self-taught leader in the California ArtGlass Movement, in Santa Barbara. In addition to using traditional tools and techniques to create his elegant pieces of glass, his signature is the integration of precious metals such as silver…

The Floral as Still Life: Delacroix, Courbet, Manet and van Gogh

with Dr. Colleen Yarger, Adjunct Professor of Art History, Randolph Macon College

Tuesdays, Mar 24 – Apr 14, 1 – 2:30 pm

Conference Suite & Galleries

Van Gogh and many of his contemporaries were committed to flowers as both a subject and a source of painterly meditation, as evidenced by VMFA’s special exhibition Van Gogh, Manet, and Matisse: The Art of the Flower. Focusing on four major artists featured in this intriguing exhibition: Eugène Delacroix, Gustave Courbet, Édouard Manet and Vincent…

The Art of the Japanese Landscape Print

with Dr. Kerry Lucinda Brown, PhD, Department of Art History, VCU

Tuesdays, Feb 10 & 17, 1 – 2:30 pm

Conference Suite & Galleries

This course is an exploration of the history of the Japanese woodblock print, highlighting the emergence of the ukiyo-e (floating world) in Edo Period Japan (1615 – 1868) and the Shin Hanga (New Prints) movement of the Taisho period (1912 – 26). To complement what students learn in the classroom, they’ll visit the special exhibition Water and Shadow: Kawase…

Oxide Pottery

Oxide Pottery Trunk Show

Sat, Nov 29 – Sun, Nov 30 11 am – 4 pm

VMFA Shop

Justin Rice and Chatham Monk, both from Lynchburg, VA, with degrees from the Cleveland Institute of Art, use their backgrounds in drawing, printmaking, and decorative patterns to collaborate on this stunning line of porcelain scraffitowork. Without the use of templates or stencils, the pair hand-carve images into a black under glaze to expose the white clay…

The Japanese Landscape Through Prints: A Forum

with Dr. Ken Brown, Dr. Christine Guth, and Dr. Noriko Kuwahara

Sat, Mar 28, 10 am – 3 pm

Leslie Cheek Theater

International speakers discuss the vibrancy and history of the Japanese landscape through prints, including the legacy of Kawase Hasui. Speakers include: Dr. Ken Brown, Professor of Asian Art History at California State University, Long Beach and Guest Curator of Water & Shadow: Kawase Hasui and Japanese Landscape Prints and author of studies of Hasui, the…

Jason McLeod: Virginia Jewelry Artist Show & Sale

Thu – Fri, Dec 11 – 12, noon – 8 pm

VMFA Shop

Jason McLeod loves the idea of time travel. In his notable “Time Traveler” series, this talented, self-taught studio jeweler and goldsmith, who graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University and began designing jewelry in 2004, uses designs with celestial coding and maps. The moving components in this series represent the stitching together of our reality, the navigation…

Book Club: King Leopold’s Ghost

Thu, Nov 20, 5:30 – 7 pm

Conference Room 1

In the 1880s, King Leopold of Belgium took possession of the unexplored Congo River area in Africa. He then proceeded to exploit its natural resources and its people. Ultimately responsible for millions of deaths, he shrewdly managed to portray himself as a humanitarian. This haunting and award-winning historical account by Adam Hochschild not only recounts…

Giuseppe Castiglione in China: Imperial Painter, Humble Servant

Fri, Jan 2, 6:30 – 8:30 pm

Leslie Cheek Theater

How did a young Jesuit missionary born in Italy end up in 1700s Imperial China as artist to three emperors? The story of Giuseppe Castiglione is one of passion, conviction, and creativity; and his journey has left a long-lasting impact in China and beyond. Father Jerry Martinson, executive producer of the film, has encountered similar…

VMFA Book Club: Van Gogh’s Ghost Paintings

with author Cliff Edwards

Thu, Feb 25, 5:30–7 pm

Pauley Center Parlor

Did you know that Van Gogh destroyed some of his own paintings? What does this decision say about the artist and his religious views? And how did a Japanese zen master factor in? In this session of VMFA Book Club, we will be joined by author Cliff Edwards, Professor of Philosophy and Religious Studies at VCU,…