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Art Study Center Seminar at Home: The Blues—Cobalt and Indigo in Asian Art

Two images side by side show, on the left, a group of lilies, leaves, and insects painted blue on a white surface, and, on the right, irises and butterflies in varying shades of blue embroidered onto a blue-black piece of fabric.
Left: Cup with flaring rim and decoration of rocks, plants, chickens, and insects (detail), China, Qing dynasty to Modern period, 19th or 20th century. Blue-and-white ware: porcelain with decoration painted in underglaze cobalt blue. Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Samuel B. Grimson, 1983.54.1; and right: Woman’s robe with floral decor (detail), China, Qing dynasty, 19th century. Blue silk gauze ground with needlepoint decoration. Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of Mrs. Walter Beck, 1960.169.20.

Seminar

In Asia, the mineral cobalt has long been used as a colorant in ceramic glazes, and indigo dye, derived from plants of the Indigofera genus, has been employed in textiles and paints. In this Art Study Center Seminar, a curator, conservators, and a conservation scientist consider the history of blue through the ceramics, textiles, and paintings now on view in the Picturing the Lives of Women installation in the Asian art galleries.

Led by:
Angela Chang, Assistant Director, Conservator of Objects and Sculpture, and Head of Objects Lab, Straus Center for Conservation and Technical Studies

Susan Costello, Associate Conservator of Objects and Sculpture, Straus Center for Conservation and Technical Studies

Katherine Eremin, Patricia Cornwell Senior Conservation Scientist, Straus Center for Conservation and Technical Studies

Sarah Laursen, Alan J. Dworsky Associate Curator of Chinese Art, Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art

This talk will take place online via Zoom. The event is free and open to all, but registration is required. To register, please complete this online form.

Please read these instructions on how to join a meeting on Zoom. For questions about Art Study Center Seminars at Home, email am_register@harvard.edu.

Please note that closed captioning is available during this program.

The Harvard Art Museums have reopened to the public. Reservations are required for visitors and can be made up to three weeks in advance. Please visit the museum website for more information.