Highlights from the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco!

Surprisingly, one of the major cities in the world with a renowned Asian art museum I never visited is San Francisco. Despite my extensive travels for Asian art auction previews, appraisals, and consultations, this destination had eluded me - until recently. Fortunately, I was finally able to cross it off my bucket list in early May.

I had just wrapped up a trip to Hong Kong, where I viewed major auction highlights at Christie’s and Sotheby’s (you can read about that experience here). On my way back to Toronto, I made a two-day stop in San Francisco, spending a full day at the Asian Art Museum. It turned out to be a wonderful detour.

The Asian Art Museum of San Francisco boasts a remarkably strong collection of artworks from China, Japan, Korea, Southeast Asia, and the Himalayan region. Many of its pieces are true masterpieces, many of which have been widely published and are part of the world-renowned Avery Brundage Collection.

Avery Brundage (1887–1975) is perhaps best known as a former president of the International Olympic Committee. Born in Detroit and a fervent supporter of amateur sports, he was a track star and an engineering student who later his fortune in the construction industry. His passion for Asian art began in 1936, after visiting the Royal Academy in London during a trip to Europe for Olympic affairs. Brundage believed that Chinese art was undervalued at the time, particularly due to the turmoil of the Republican period, and saw an opportunity to build a world-class collection.

The museum was founded upon his collection and officially established in 1966, eventually moving to its current home in the San Francisco Civic Center in 2003. Today, the museum houses over 20,000 objects, with about 1,200 on display at any given time.

In recent years, the Asian Art Museum has expanded its curatorial vision to include modern and contemporary Asian art, particularly works by Asian American artists, as well as underrepresented regions of Asia.

There is also a clear effort to engage younger and more diverse audiences. A recent example is the Fall 2024 exhibition, 'Hallyu! The Korean Wave', which explored contemporary Korean pop culture - including 'K' television, film, and music - and attracted a wide range of visitors.

In this blog however, I will focus on some of the more traditional Asian art highlights at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco.

Image 1. The main entrance to the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco. Originally founded in 1958 as the Center of Asian Art and Culture to house Avery Brundage's collection of over 8,000 objects in Golden Gate Park, the museum moved to its current location in 2003 in what was formerly the Main Library in San Francisco's Civic Center. This was originally a 1917 Beaux-Arts building designed by George Kelham.

Image 2. The monumental stairwell at the present Asian Art Museum.

Image 3. A pair of culturally important and near life-size Japanese hollow dry lacquer sculptures from the Nara Period (710-794) depicting the deities Brahma and Indra. They are both important Indian deities that were incorporated into Buddhism, and were once part of Japan's Kofukuji Temple in Nara.

These figures were badly damaged when found in 1906 and were then sold to Japanese industrialist Masuda Takashi (1848-1938) to raise funds for temple repairs. They were later purchased by Avery Brundage for his collection.

Image 4. A very rare and old Japanese blue and white 'bird' vase from Arita. This vase was made circa 1660-1680 of the Edo Period (1615-1868) and was one of the early prototypes of porcelain produced in Japan.

Image 5. A large Korean white-glazed porcelain ‘moon jar’ from the 18th century of the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910). Moon jars (dalhangari) have become a national icon in Korean culture and part of popular culture.

Known for their large size (they must be over 40 cm high!), moon jars exude the neo-Confucian aesthetics of purity, modesty, and naturalness. Each moon jar is unique, often bearing subtle variations in shape, asymmetry, and firing flaws.

At auction, moon jars fetch extremely high prices with the last example selling in Christie's New York for USD 2.833 million (approximately CAD 3.88 million).

Image 6a. One of my favourite display cabinets at the San Francisco Museum of Art. This cabinet imitates a Chinese Imperial curio display from the 18th Century and contains various Chinese porcelain, metalware, jade and ivory carvings. The objects showcased are all from the 17th to 19th Century.

Image 6b. In the middle section of this display cabinet is a Chinese Imperial yangcai 洋彩 (foreign colour) porcelain vase. Not to dismiss the quality of the other items in the cabinet, but this vase was part of a select group of Imperial porcelain made directly for the Qianlong Emperor (r. 1736-1795) between 1740-1744.

This yangcai vase contains a rare pink sgraffito ground and painted with scrolling vine and blooming florals influenced by 17th Century European designs transmitted to China during the early 18th Century. This is a very unique vase that blends foreign influence in design and colour palettes, while catering to the Qianlong Emperor's taste during the mid 18th Century.

Image 7. In this photo is a large Chinese wucai 五彩 (five colour) porcelain 'fish' jar and cover with Jiajing mark and period (1522-1566). These fish jars mark the pinnacle of late Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) porcelain production with its large size and colourful depiction of well-painted carp. The fish appear lively as they swim in various poses amongst the underwater plants.

The Jiajing Emperor was a devote Daoist, and the symbolism of these jars showcase the Daoist belief that fish are happy because they live within a carefree existence. It exemplifies a state of mind that humanity should follow.

I was exceptionally lucky to be able to examine a similar pair of fish jars when visiting a Sotheby's London auction in the late Fall of 2025!

Image 8. A display case containing Chinese Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) porcelain treasues at the Asian Art Museum. To the right is a large Chinese famille rose 'nine peaches' vase with Qianlong mark and period (1736-1795). This is one of the few examples of this type of vase outside of Asia.

Image 9a. Here we have a very rare Chinese falangcai 琺琅彩 (foreign-influenced enamel) bowl, bearing a Kangxi yuzhi mark and period (1662–1722). Like the yangcai vase mentioned earlier, this type of decoration was strongly influenced by Western artistic styles, especially through the involvement of Jesuit missionaries in China during the early 18th century.

This bowl represents one of the earliest successful uses of new Western technologies in Chinese porcelain production. Notably, it incorporates gold into the enamels, enabling a much broader and more vibrant colour palette than was previously possible.

Visually, it doesn’t conform to traditional Chinese aesthetic norms. The large floral motifs and scrolling vines are more reminiscent of Baroque European design from the same era. At the center of the bowl is a medallion featuring a stylized pair of fu 福 characters, symbolizing good fortune or longevity. This bowl was specifically made for the Kangxi Emperor, who was the grandfather of the Qianlong Emperor.

Image 9b. The base of the falangcai bowl where you can see the upside down four-character reign mark within a double square. It reads 康熙御製 Kangxi yuzhi which translates to made by Imperial command for the Kangxi Emperor.

Image 10. There were a lot of Buddhist artwork on display at the Asian Art Museum. One of the most elegant is this Chinese lacquer wood figure of Guanyin dated to the Song Dynasty (960-1279).

This rare figure of Guanyin (Avalokiteshvara in Sanskrit), is the Buddhist deity of compassion. He has both male and female forms and depicted seated in the position of 'royal ease'. The sculpture is almost life-size and the quality of the carving is extremely realistic.

Image 11a. Perhaps the most historically important object in the San Francisco Asian Art Museum is this gilt bronze figure of a seated Buddha. It was the most widely published object from Avery Brundage’s collection and depicts the historical Buddha Shakyamuni seated in a meditative pose.

On the reverse, the Buddha is inscribed with a date of AD 338. This makes it the earliest known dated Buddha sculpture from China and places it nearly 400 years after Buddhism was first introduced to China from India.

The style of the figure is distinctly Indian, as seen in the seated posture, large eyes, and characteristic coiffure. Originally, the sculpture would have included additional elements: the holes on the front suggest it was once adorned with lions, and the back likely featured a large halo.

Image 11b. The reverse of the important Buddha with fragments of Chinese text that dates this object to AD 338.

Image 12. The Asian Art Museum also houses many remarkable animal sculptures, including this exceptionally fine and large Chinese sancai glazed camel from the Tang Dynasty (618–907).

In addition to its dynamic pose and vibrant sancai 三彩 (three-colour) glaze, the anatomical detail and craftsmanship of this camel are truly spectacular. It represents the type of camels used in caravans that traveled along the Silk Road, facilitating trade through Central Asia and reaching as far as the Middle East.

Given its impressive size and design, this sculpture likely originated from the tomb of a wealthy merchant. Such figures were intended to accompany the deceased into the afterlife, symbolizing the status and worldly success they enjoyed during their lifetime.

Image 13. And speaking of animals, one of the most famous (and endearing) examples at the Asian Art Museum is this Chinese bronze ritual vessel in the form of a rhinocerous. It was excavated from Shangdong Province and dated to the late Shang Dynasty (BCE 1600-1050).

The animal has a gentle smile and cute bulging eyes. It also shows that rhinoceroses used to be prevalent in China. However they were over-hunted and disappeared during the Han Dynasty (BCE 206 - 220 AD).

Image 14a. The Asian Art musuem also has a major focus on arts of Southeast Asia. One of the most impressive pieces I saw was this 19th Century Thai throne made for the historical Buddha Shakyamuni.

The throne is constructed of lacquered wood and gilt paint, and is exceptionally ornate. The base is made to look like lotus petals. Looking closely at the details, you can notice fitted with glass and semi-precious stones throughout.

Image 14. Detail of the large throne with the seated figure of Buddha.

Image 15a. Finally, even though this was my first trip to the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco, I have collected numerous old books about the collection over the years. The one on the right is titled 'Chinese Treasures from the Avery Brundage Collection' (1968) and is the accompanying catalogue for the collection as it traveled to major museums including ones in New York, Detroit, Chicago, Honolulu, Seattle, Portland over a period of a year.

The book on the left 'Avery Brundage Collection: Chinese Jades' (1972) is an exhibition catalogue focusing on his vast jade collection.

Anyways, the reason for showing these two old catalogues is that in addition to reading them for insight about the collection, I was always hoping I would have the opportunity to see the objects on their respective front covers one day. And I was finally able to accomplish this!

Image 15b. Here is the cover piece to the 1968 publication - a Chinese Yuan Dynasty (1279-1368) gilt bronze seated figure of the Buddhist deity Guanyin.

Image 15c. And here is the cover piece to the 1972 publication - a Chinese Ming Dynasty brownish-celadon jade carving of a groom wrestling a horse.

And that's it for my trip to the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco. Thank you for reading and please let me know if you have any questions or comments.

I have a busy schedule ahead which I will write more about in a future blog. I'm currently in Paris visiting the Asian Art sales at Bonhams, Christie's and Sotheby's. Later this month I will be off to Montreal and Vancouver to gather consignments for my October Asian Art online sale with Heffel. But I do hope to visit San Francisco again in the near future. If you want to keep track of my Asian art travels, please follow me through my Instagram account @anthonywuart.