Female divinity in its myriad South Asian forms is the subject of a major exhibition, "Devi: The Great Goddess," showing at the Smithsonian's Arthur M. Sackler Gallery through Sept. 6. More than 120 objects from India, Nepal, China and Pakistan spanning over 2,000 years are on view.
The collection of paintings, textiles and bronzes, stone and terra-cotta sculptures show Devi in her many guises, divided into categories for easier understanding. Nurturing mother, fierce destroyer, smitten lover, bestower of gifts, local protector, semi-divine being and radiant saint are, the manifestations of Devi, represented in traditional, modern, folk and sacred art. Known by hundreds of different names, Devi is revered by devotees throughout South Asia.
A strikingly modern sculpture of deep-blue fiberglass, "At the Hub of Things," by contemporary English artist Anish Kapoor, greets the viewer outside the main exhibit. The concave hemisphere, both womb and tomb, gives an experience of the void from which Kali, the great cosmic mother emerges.