White-Robed Kannon

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This graceful frontal view of Kannon (Sanskrit: Pandaravasini) emphasizes the deity's dignity and compassion. It derives from Esoteric Buddhist iconography that systematically groups deities into mandalas of the two worlds: the Diamond World Mandala and the Womb World Mandala. White-robed Kannon is one of twenty-one Kannon in the Lotus Court section of the Womb World Mandala. The bodhisattva's pose, with one leg pendent, seems to be a precursor to the more relaxed pose he assumes in the monochrome ink painting of White-robed Kannon in a landscape. Here, Kannon, wearing a delicately decorated white robe and sitting on a white lotus pedestal, conforms to the feminized concept of “Mother Kannon,” an aspect of the deity that was developed further in later medieval worship. Some stiffness of line in the robes is probably the result of copying from a model. More fluid brushstrokes in the lotus petals create a sense of volume, a quality that suggests a thirteenth-century date for this work.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Each of the many civilizations of Asia is represented by outstanding works, providing an unrivaled experience of the artistic traditions of nearly half the world.

Metropolitan Museum of Art