Review of Reproduction of 'Cave Temples of Dunhuang: Buddhist Art on China's Silk Road'

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
By Lee Lawrence
Cave 285, a full-size copy of which is on display in the exhibition. PHOTO: COURTESY DUNHUANG ACADEMY
CALIFORNIA---On a sunny afternoon, the glare in the Getty Center’s Arrival Plaza is blinding—and stepping into Cave 285 feels like teleporting to heaven. Here, in one of the main features of “Cave Temples of Dunhuang: Buddhist Art on China’s Silk Road,” winged creatures flutter on the vaulted ceiling while, on the walls, Buddhas preach, myths unfold, mortals repent, donors pay homage. This is a full-size copy, created by hand on the basis of detailed scans and myriad photographs of a grotto carved into cliffs that edge the Gobi desert in northwestern China. [link]


J. Paul Getty Museum: "Cave Temples of Dunhuang: Buddhist Art on China’s Silk Road" (Ends Sept. 4, 2016);1200 Getty Center Drive, Los Angeles, CA; (310) 440-7300; getty.edu