Water Moon Avalokitesvara

between 15th and 16th century

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About the Artwork

Avalotikeśvara, or Guanyin in Chinese, is a bodhisattva, or enlightened being, who embodies the compassion of all Buddhas. On his path to Buddhahood, a bodhisattva chose to stay behind in the earthly realm to help others to achieve enlightenment.
In this painting, the seated posture with the right leg crossed before the body represents the Water Moon manifestation and the landscape depiction of his personal paradise known as Mount Potalaka, which was thought to be on an island somewhere south of India. This painting, probably created during the fifteenth century in Japan, has classic elements of the Chinese Buddhist figural style. Its closest corollary is a thirteenth-century painting of Avolokiteśvara in the collection of the Yamaguchi Prefecture Museum.
From Bulletin of the Detroit Institute of Arts 89 (2015)

Title Water Moon Avalokitesvara

Artwork Date between 15th and 16th century

Artist ----------

Life Dates ----------

Nationality Please note: Definitions for nationality may vary significantly, depending on chronology and world events. Some definitions include: Belonging to a people having a common origin based on a geography and/or descent and/or tradition and/or culture and/or religion and/or language, or sharing membership in a legally defined nation. Japanese

Culture Please note: Cultures may be defined by the language, customs, religious beliefs, social norms, and material traits of a group. Japanese

Medium Ink and paint on silk

Dimensions Overall: 72 3/4 × 24 1/8 inches (184.8 × 61.3 cm) Image: 34 1/2 × 16 inches (87.6 × 40.6 cm)

Classification Paintings

Department Asian Art

Credit Founders Society Purchase, Friends of Asian Art Acquisition Fund

Accession Number This unique number is assigned to an individual artwork as part of the cataloguing process at the time of entry into the permanent collection. Most frequently, accession numbers begin with the year in which the artwork entered the museum’s holdings. For example, 2008.3 refers to the year of acquisition and notes that it was the 3rd of that year. The DIA has a few additional systems—no longer assigned—that identify specific donors or museum patronage groups. 2000.88

Markings

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Provenance

(Kaikodo, New York, New York, USA);
2000-present, purchase by the Detroit Institute of Arts (Detroit, Michigan, USA)

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Exhibition History

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The exhibition history of a number of objects in our collection only begins after their acquisition by the museum, and may reflect an incomplete record.

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Published References

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We regularly update our object record as new research and findings emerge, and we welcome your feedback for correction and/or improvement.

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Catalogue Raisoneé

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Credit Line for Reproduction

Japanese, Water Moon Avalokitesvara, between 15th and 16th century, ink and paint on silk. Detroit Institute of Arts, Founders Society Purchase, Friends of Asian Art Acquisition Fund, 2000.88.