Segment from a sutra from the Chusonji

Object Details

• Provenance

  ?-1984

  Probably Sugimoto Hiroshi Works of Fine Art, New York, method of acquisition unknown [1]

  Likely by 1984-2013

  Sylvan Barnet (1926-2016) and William Burto (1921-2013) (owned jointly), likely purchased from Sugimoto Works of Fine Art [2]

  2013-2014

  Sylvan Barnet and National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution, bequeathed by William Burto to the Smithsonian [3]

  From 2014

  National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution, gift of Sylvan Barnet and William Burto [4]

  Notes:

  [1] See object file for letter from Sugimoto Works of Fine Art to Sylvan Barnet and William Burto, dated November 28, 1984, with the heading “Chūsonji Kin-Gin Kōshō-Kyō.” See also Valerie C. Doran, “Professing the Love of Art: A Conversation with Sylvan Barnet and William Burto,” Orientations vol. 33, no. 8 (October 2002): p. 58. Barnet told the author, “In the 1980s, when he was a struggling young photographer trying to make his way in the United States, Sugimoto supported himself by opening a Japanese art gallery in Soho called Mingei. We only bought one piece from him.”

  Sugimoto Hiroshi (b. 1948) is a photographer, architect, sculptor, and a collector of art and antiques. Born and raised in Tokyo, Japan, Sugimoto moved to California in 1974 to study art, and in 1978 Sugimoto and his first wife, Kinue, opened the gallery Mingei in Soho, New York. Initially offering “Mingei,” Japanese folk arts, the couple expanded their inventory within a few years to offer East Asian as well as Japanese art and antiques. Since the 1980s, Sugimoto has garnered great success and acclaim as a photographer and his work is held in international collections and museums.

  [2] See 1 and object file F2014.6.1-19 “Japan, Heian period, Group of Calligraphies, Gift of Sylvan Barnet and William Burto. Documents: 2004-2013” for Gift Agreement between the Smithsonian Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery and Sylvan Barnet and William Burto. Signed by the Director on August 9, 2004, and counter-signed by Barnet and Burto August 13, 2004. The object is described as “Segment from a sutra from the Chūsonji.” Additionally, see object file for a copy of the “Will of William Burto,” signed and dated February 14, 2011, Article I, “Executor. I appoint Sylvan Barnet, of Cambridge, Massachusetts, to be Executor of this will,” and Article II, “I give my art collection as follows: (1) To the Smithsonian Institution, Freer Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., all of my right, title and interest, including, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, all copyright and associated rights, in the following works of art,” including “Segment from a sutra from the Chūsonji,” described as “Segment of a handscroll mounted as a hanging scroll; gold and silver on indigo-dyed paper.” See also The William Burto Revocable Trust, signed and dated June 9, 2011.

  Sylvan Barnet (1926-2015) and William Burto (1921-2013) were scholars of English literature and collectors of Asian art, focusing on Korean and Japanese works. The two amassed one of the finest private collections of Zen calligraphy, which featured works from the Nara through the Edo periods. As a professor of English literature at Tufts University in the early 1960s, Barnet proposed unique editions of Shakespeare plays, complete with introductions and study aids, to New American Library. The publishing house would produce “The Signet Classic Shakespeare” from 1963 to 1972. Barnet served as general editor as well as providing introductions for several plays, and these popular editions were widely adopted by universities throughout the United States.

  Barnet and Burto purchased their first object, a Korean celadon bowl, in New York in 1963. Just a few years later, they purchased their first calligraphy from Nathan V. Hammer, a work by Jiun Onkō. Following William Burto’s death in 2013, his half of the collection was given to the The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; Harvard Art Museums; Metropolitan Museum of Art; and the National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution, respectively. Before his death in 2016, Sylvan Barnet donated his half of the collection to the same institutions.

  [3] See note 2, and object file F2014.6.1-19 “Japan, Heian period, Group of Calligraphies, Gift of Sylvan Barnet and William Burto. Acquisition papers,” for Deed of Gift signed by Sylvan Barnet September 24, 2014, and counter-signed by the Director October 7, 2014. In the attached object list, it is noted that Barnet is giving the Freer Gallery of Art, Smithsonian Institution, his “50% share of ownership of: Segment from a sutra from the Chūsonji” described as “Heian period, 12th century; Japan; Gold and silver on indigo-dyed paper,” with the credit line “Gift of Sylvan Barnet and William Burto.” This object is part of the Museum’s Freer Gallery of Art Collection.

  [4] See notes 2 and 3.

  Research updated July 17, 2024

• Collection

  Freer Gallery of Art Collection

• Exhibition History

  The Power of Words in an Age of Crisis (October 14, 2017 to May 6, 2018)

• Previous custodian or owner

  Hiroshi Sugimoto 杉本博司 (Japan, born 1948)

  Sylvan Barnet (1926-2015)

  William Burto (1921-2013)

• Origin

  Japan

• Credit Line

  Gift of Sylvan Barnet and William Burto

• Type

  Calligraphy

• Restrictions and Rights

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Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1100s

• Name

  Barnet, Sylvan, Sugimoto, Hiroshi, Burto, William

• Place

  Japan

• Topic

  Art, Late Heian (Fujiwara) period (897 - 1185), Japanese Art

• Culture

  Buddhists, Japanese

• Object Type

  Calligraphy (visual works)