East Asian Art Resources: Museums & Organizations

Basic English-language resources for researching Chinese, Japanese, and Korean art

U.S. art museums with major Asian holdings

There are many important collections of East Asian art in museums in the United States. The websites for these institutions will not only describe current and past exhibitions but will often provide photographs of the collection with detailed descriptions.  

Asian Art Museum of San Francisco. One of the largest museums in the Western world devoted exclusively to Asian art.

Cleveland Museum of Art. An important art collection that spans the centuries and the world in it's 15 departments. The Chinese collection is renowned. 

Freer and Sackler Galleries of Art. Part of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC these museums have art objects East Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, the Islamic world, the ancient Neat East, and ancient Egypt.

Honolulu Museum of Art. Hawaiʻi’s largest private presenter of visual arts programs, boasting a permanent collection of over 40,000 works of art from cultures around the world and perhaps most well known for its collection of Asian art, especially Japanese and Chinese works.

Los Angeles County Museum of Art. A multi-building complex with collections from around the world. The Hammer Building houses the Chinese and Korean collections and the Pavilion for Japanese Art displays the Shin'enkan collection donated by Joe D. Price.

Minneapolis Institute of Art. The collection of Asian art represents 17 Asian cultures spanning nearly 5,000 years.

Museum of Fine Arts Boston. One of the largest museums in the United States with an extensive collection of Chinese art and the largest museum collection of Japanese works under one roof in the world outside of Japan.  

Seattle Art Museum. The Asian Art Museum in Seattle is a division of the Seattle Art Museum. They recently published a catalog for the Chinese Painting & Calligraphy portion of the collection.

Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. Located in Kansas City, MO about an hour's drive from Lawrence. An encyclopedic museum with particular strength in Asian art.

Organizations

Asia Society. Headquartered in New York City where the Rockefeller Collection of Asian Art is displayed, the Society is a non-profit, non-partisan organisation whose aim is to build awareness about Asia through education.

China Institute in America. Presents exhibitions and programs about traditional and contemporary Chinese arts and culture. Original and traveling exhibitions are accompanied by scholarly catalogs, curator's lectures and other programs that provide an in-depth background to Chinese art. Lecture series, short courses, symposia, film screenings and workshops covering a range of traditional and contemporary topics including history, literature, and philosophy are also offered throughout the year.

Japan Society. Located in New York City, this non-profit, non-political organization provides access to information on Japan, offers opportunities to experience Japanese culture, and fosters sustained and open dialogue on issues important to the U.S., Japan, and East Asia. Has an active exhibition, performance, and conference schedule.

Korea Society. A non-profit, non-partisan, organization dedicated to the promotion of greater awareness, understanding and cooperation between the people of the United States and Korea. In the arts, the Society organizes tours for Korean performing arts companies, mounts art exhibitions in the New York headquarters and has traveling exhibitions, and is home to the New York Korean Film Festival.