Buddha Book: A Meeting of Images

As Buddhist scholar Robert A. F. Thurman explains in the introduction, the image of the Buddha serves as “a refuge for security, a beacon for inspiration, and a temple for creativity.” This engaging volume presents more than 90 artistic representations of the Buddha, including Eastern and Western, ancient and contemporary. From exquisite temple carvings to modern interpretations by painter Henri Matisse, musician David Byrne, filmmaker Bernardo Bertolucci, video artist Nam June Paik, readers are presented with diverse likenesses of the Buddha from around the world, inviting them to contemplate the many faces of enlightenment. Connoting serenity, wisdom, compassion, and enlightenment, the sheer range of interpretation of the Buddha testifies to its lasting power as an icon.