Minneapolis Institute of Art

Amida, the Buddha of Infinite Light

Japan

Date

12th century

Medium

Wood with lacquer and gold

Department

Asian Art

Institution

Minneapolis Institute of Art

Amitābha is the central figure of the Pure Land schools of Buddhism, living in a paradise called the Western Pure Land, a beautiful respite from the cycle of rebirth. This sculpture would have been the principal object of worship at a Japanese Pure Land temple, flanked by sculptures of attendant bodhisattvas Avalokiteshvara and Mahāsthāmaprāpta (Kannon and Seishi in Japanese). Using the yosegi-zukuri technique, the sculptor carved multiple blocks of wood, pieced them together, then carved the whole piece in more detail. Such works were often covered in gold foil, as was the case with this Amitābha. Asia

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