The Freer Gallery of Art, named for Detroit industrialist Charles Lang Freer, boasts an internationally renowned collection of Asian art and is home to the world’s largest holdings of works by the American artist James McNeill Whistler. Freer became interested in Asian art through his friendship with Whistler, whose work had been influenced by Japanese prints and Chinese ceramics. In 1906, Freer donated 7,500 paintings, sculptures, drawings and works in metal, lacquer and jade to the Smithsonian, along with endowment funds. Today, the collection has grown to 24,000 works.

 

The Peacock Room

In 1876 a wealthy ship owner, Frederick R. Leyland, asked James Whistler to advise his architect, Thomas Jeckyll, on a color for his dining room shutters and doors. Jeckyll had designed the room around a painting by Whistler, The Princess from the Land of Porcelain (1863-64), and the china that Leyland had collected. Embossed and gilded antique leather covered the walls. On the floor was an Oriental rug with a red border.

To Whistler, these elements did not go with the colors of the large portrait, so he requested permission from Leyland to make “minor alterations.” In his patron’s absence, Whistler covered the ceiling with Dutch metal, or imitation gold leaf, over which he painted a lush pattern of peacock feathers. He then gilded Jeckyll’s walnut shelving and embellished the wooden shutters with images of four magnificently plumed peacocks. Minor alterations, indeed.

Highlights

“Cornucopia: Ceramics from Southern Japan” (Dec. 19, 2009-Jan. 9, 2011). Beginning in the 1600s, new glazes and high-fired techniques revolutionized the art of potters in Kyushu, a southern Japanese island. This exhibition illuminates the engaging variety of local styles.

“Masterpieces of Chinese Painting” (June 12-Nov. 28). View some of the finest Chinese paintings in the museum’s collection, including several that have not been displayed for years. These exceptional works trace the development of Chinese paintings over numerous generations.

“Freer & Whistler: Points of Contact” James McNeill Whistler played an important role in the aesthetic education of the museum’s founder Charles Lang Freer. See views of the Thames from Whistler’s Chelsea residence and an ensemble of the artist’s well-known Nocturne paintings.

“Surface Beauty: American Art and Freer’s Aesthetic Vision” This one-room exhibition brings together a group of decorative paintings by Thomas Dewing and Dwight Tryon, along with a selection of ceramics from a Detroit pottery.

“Arts of the Indian Subcontinent and the Himalayas” Sublimely beautiful Buddhist, Jain, Hindu and Islamic objects showcase the extraordinary range of South Asian and Himalayan art.

“Korean Ceramics” Simple in form and spare in decoration, ceramics have long been an integral part of Korean culture, admired for their distinctive balance of informality and dignity. The gallery features tableware, Buddhist cinerary urns, bowls and storage jars from the 3rd to 20th centuries.

For Children

Activity guides are at the information desk. Children’s programs and activities, listed in the calendar of events, are offered on weekends during the school year and weekday afternoons.

Education Programs

Teachers can visit the website asia.si.edu/education or order curriculum materials from the Gallery Shop. For teacher workshops, 202-633-0458 or fsgasiaeducation@si.edu.

The Gallery Shop

Find teapots, ranging from the whimsical to the traditional, as well as limited-edition prints, jewelry, books, Asian music CDs, sudoku puzzles and origami projects.

Become a member of the Friends of the Freer and Sackler Galleries.