Tibetan Mandalas and Japanese Baskets

A room on the second floor of the Asian Art Museum has been reconfigured for the summer as a Living Mandala in its design.



Possibly because the room is so dark, I did not experience lightning enlightenment this afternoon while wandering through.



The fault was probably mine, though transcendence did arrive while meandering through the Japanese bamboo basket room and looking at the late 19th century flower basket by Wada Waichisai I above...



...and the contemporary hanging flower basket called Pure by Nagakura Kenichi.



According to the wall label, the backpack above was discovered after a post-purchase analysis to be made of fine leather strips in an imitation of bamboo. It looks ancient and modern at the same time.