The Museum of Asian Art, University of Malaya: an invitation to explore
Document Type
Conference Item
Publication Date
1-1-2012
Abstract
The Museum of Asian Art of the University of Malaya in Kuala Lumpur was established in 1955 as the University of Malaya Art Museum in Singapore. Its primary role then was to support the teaching and learning of the History of Art course at the then University of Malaya in Singapore. Throughout the years, the collection of the Museum expanded considerably and by 1959, the collection then was divided into five main collections to represent the myriad of Southeast Asian culture namely Contemporary Malayan Art; Southeast Asian Art; Malaya and the Islamic world; Hindu and Buddhist Art; and Ceramics and Minor Arts. By 1959, the University of Malaya had two separate campuses, one in Bukit Timah in Singapore and the other in Kuala Lumpur in the Federation of Malaya. Malaysia came into being on 16th September 1963 with the merger of the Federation of Malaya, Singapore, Sabah and Sarawak. However, on 9th August 1965, Singapore become an independent state. With this move, the Singapore campus ceased its operations in 1962 and the Museum collection was divided equally between the University of Singapore and the University of Malaya. This seed collection formed the basis for the establishment of the Museum of Asian Art at the University of Malaya in Kuala Lumpur. Officially opened in 1980, the Museum houses over 7,000 pieces of ceramics from Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, China, Japan, India and Iran. Apart from having the largest collection of water vessels in the world, its collection also includes stone carvings, Islamic art collections from other Asian countries, weaved materials and paintings by local artists, copperware, weapons and kites. The Museum is not only responsible for the acquisition of artefacts but is actively promoting its collection to researchers locally and internationally.
Keywords
Museum of Asian Art, University of Malaya, Malaysia
Divisions
Library_main
Event Title
APRU Research Symposium On University Museum: Forming A University Museum Collection Networks As The Core Of Frontier Research
Event Location
Kyoto University. Japan
Event Dates
11 – 14 September 2012
Event Type
conference