Return to
What's New

Recent Development News
(July 2008)

Pacific Asia Museum Membership

• Journeys:The Silk Road
• Donor Profile: The Docent Council
• New Online Exhibit! Rank and Style
• Be a Docent at Pacific Asia Museum
• Invitation to Join an Arts Council
• About Art Donations (Word doc:29k)
• Links to Other Institutions

Journeys: The Silk Road
Opening this summer, Journeys:The Silk Road is an exhibit for the whole family. Enjoy “hands-on, minds-on” learning as you explore the people, goods, and ideas that traveled the Silk Road. Pull up a seat in the traveler’s tent, try on a dancer’s costume, smell the spices, be a trader, explore maps, read books, learn how silk is made, investigate different materials, sit on a lotus, and more!

This new gallery is made possible by contributions to the Campaign for the Future, which is designed to enhance our our visitors’ experience through more interactive exhibitions and education programmes.

Journeys: The Silk Road has been made possible by contributions to the Campaign for the Future, including generous support from: The Ahmanson Foundation The Kresge Foundation The Ralph M. Parsons Foundation Additional gifts from: Susan and Robert Bishop The Capital Group Companies Leonetti/O’Connell Family Foundation Lisa and Elton Davis The Docent Council of Pacific Asia Museum Georgianna and Paul Erskine Setsuko Oka Lisa See and Richard Kendall The Stevenson Family: Andrew and Sunny Jeanne Ward Foundation

Donor Profile: The Docent Council
One of the major supporters of the new education gallery Journeys: The Silk Road is the museum’s own Docent Council. The Council is the governing body responsible for our invaluable volunteer docents, who guide more than 4,000 visitors of all ages through the museum’s collections and exhibitions every year.

“We are so pleased to have a space permanently dedicated to education again,” said Lisa Davis, chair of the Council, “and we are delighted to have had a role in the planning. Naturally, when we had some funds available, it seemed appropriate to support the project financially as well. I hope this is just the beginning of making the museum more ‘user-friendly.’”

As individuals, the museum’s docents have been among the most generous donors to the Campaign for the Future, contributing more than $140,000.

New Online Exhibit! Rank and Style
Now you can explore how the Chinese elite in the Ming and Qing dynasties expressed status through insignia of rank and the robes and accessories that went with them. Rank and Style: Power Dressing in Imperial China is the museum’s latest online exhibit. Based on the exhibit of the same name and produced by the award-winning team that created Visions of Enlightenment, this interactive module provides teaching ideas and resources for educators.

Rank and Style: Power Dressing in Imperial China was supported in part by a generous grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services and Washington Mutual. Digital images of the museum’s permanent collection were made possible in part by a grant funded by the Getty Foundation’s Los Angeles Electronic Cataloguing Initiative.

Be a Docent at Pacific Asia Museum
Docents perform important volunteer work at Pacific Asia Museum, supporting the museum’s educational mission by leading gallery tours for groups visiting the museum.

Docent training involves a serious commitment to learning about the arts of Asia. No special skills are required; any that are needed will be taught to the newcomer on site.

The Docent Council is now actively recruiting a new class of docents to begin training for the rewarding work of being a Pacific Asia Museum Docent. In addition to a thorough training and course of study, a two-year commitment is required. Orientation is scheduled for May 29, and the training lecture series begins September 18.

Applications are available here (PDF: 63K, 2 pages) or by calling 626-449-2742, ext. 23.

Invitation to Join an Arts Council
Pacific Asia Museum’s Arts Councils are a great way to get involved with the museum and to contribute to the community. The members of the Arts Councils share an interest in the arts, cultures, and peoples of Asia and the Pacific Islands. The councils take trips to interesting places in and around Los Angeles, organize cultural programs at Pacific Asia Museum, and provide invaluable volunteer support and resources for special events.

For example, Japanese Arts Council is now assisting the curatorial staff with the Festival of Japanese Art & Style, and has been involved in planning the month-long series of events. Membership in one of the museum’s Arts Councils is just $25. You must also be a member of Pacific Asia Museum to join an Arts Council. There are eight active councils: Chinese, Japanese, Pakistan, Himalayan, Korean, Philippine, Myanmar, and Thai. Call the membership office today at ext. 37 to learn more about becoming a member of one of these essential Arts Councils!

Links to Other Institutions

Pacific Asia Museum Membership

Recent Development News (January 2008)
(October 2007)
(July 2007)
(April 2007)
(January 2007)
(October 2006)
(August 2006)
(May 2006)
(March 2006)
(January 2006)

Return to What's New page