National Museum of Asian Art | Art in Practice: Encountering the Buddha with the Philip Glass Ensemble

Immerse yourself in the hypnotic music of composer Philip Glass while exploring artworks from the exhibition Encountering the Buddha: Art and Practice Across Asia at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art. With Glass’s mesmerizing music as the soundtrack, the film takes a contemplative look at Buddhist sculptures and paintings as well as the complete Tibetan shrine room at the heart of the exhibition. In an interview made for this film, Glass explores the many ways his music has been inspired by Buddhism and Tibetan culture. The Philip Glass Ensemble performs excerpts from several of his signature works, all filmed recently in New York for this project.

Following the film premiere, join a live Q&A with director Arturo Béjar, Andrew Sterman of the Philip Glass Ensemble, and curator Debra Diamond.

Lead Sponsor: The Robert H. N. Ho Family Foundation.
(Dir.: Arturo Béjar, United States, 2021, 60 min.)