From Borobudur to Hokusai — Buddhist stupas, Hindu temples, imperial palaces, Mughal gardens, and contemporary interventions.
Buddhist and Hindu monuments physically embody cosmology — stupas, mandalas, and temple towers are three-dimensional models of the cosmos, not merely buildings.
Imperial, religious, and mercantile patronage determines iconography, scale, and material. The Taj Mahal, Angkor Wat, and the Forbidden City are all inseparable from the power claims of their patrons.
Buddhist forms traveled from India to China, Japan, and Southeast Asia — absorbing local styles along the way. Contemporary artists re-engage these traditions critically (Cai Guo-Qiang, Ai Weiwei).
Sanchi, Jetavanarama, Dunhuang, Longmen, Todaiji, Borobudur — stupas, caves, temples
Khajuraho, Nataraja — nagara tower, erotic sculpture, bronze casting
Dunhuang frescoes, Longmen, David Vases, Forbidden City — imperial and religious synthesis
Todaiji, Ryoan-ji, Great Wave — Buddhist, Zen, and ukiyo-e print culture
Borobudur, Angkor Wat — mandala plans, Hindu-Buddhist syncretism
Jahangir painting, Taj Mahal — Islamic patronage, Persianate influence, marble
Portrait of Sin Sukju — Joseon court portrait convention, gwa-je examination system
Cai Guo-Qiang — diaspora, political memory, Chinese classical texts re-read