Exhibit Design Approach:

Although titled Hell, the exhibition unfolds as a dialogue between two opposing realms. The first explores humanity's many visions of hell—its terror, punishment, and symbolism—as depicted across centuries of religious art and material culture. The second turns toward its counterpart: the promise of paradise, where the soul journeys through a life of virtue, devotion, and spiritual fulfillment. Together, these two overarching narratives branch into a series of thematic subsections that invite visitors to examine the many interpretations of the afterlife.

To clearly articulate these transitions, a cohesive system of architectural markers was developed to guide visitors through the exhibition. Rather than relying solely on graphics or signage, shifts in narrative are expressed through materiality, color, and light. These interventions are integrated directly into the exhibition architecture, appearing primarily at the termini of floating and peninsula walls to create subtle yet unmistakable moments of transition.

Within the galleries devoted to hell, the wall markers are clad in shou sugi ban (also known as yakisugi), the traditional Japanese technique of charring cedar. Varying degrees of burn create richly textured blackened surfaces that evoke fire, decay, and transformation while lending the architecture a tactile sense of weight and permanence. In contrast, the heavenly galleries employ the same cedar construction finished with a soft, hand-applied whitewash, creating a quiet, luminous material expression that suggests purity, serenity, and transcendence.

Color and illumination reinforce these architectural cues throughout the exhibition. At times, transitions are immediate and dramatic; elsewhere, they unfold gradually through nuanced shifts in tone, texture, and atmosphere. Carefully choreographed lighting further heightens the emotional experience, deepening moments of contemplation while guiding visitors through the exhibition's evolving narrative.

Excerpt from Exhibition Website:

The first comprehensive exhibition in the United States to explore portrayals of hell across the Asian religious traditions of Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism, and Islam, Comparative Hell: Arts of Asian Underworlds, examines how systems of belief and the underworlds within them are manifest in the rich artistic creations of Asia.

Exceptional and visually stunning artworks explore the impact of conceptions of hell on Asian visual culture over time. Didactic paintings, sculptures, and sacred objects introduce the notions of Buddhist, Hindu, Jain, and Islamic cosmology, as well as ideas about judgment, punishment, and salvation after death—many of which are shared by these traditions. Exhibition artworks portray religious threats of fiery torture as a means to shape values and beliefs, to instill virtuous behavior, and to encourage atonement for sins—reflecting a universal human desire for spiritual transformation. platforms for artists.

“A dazzling exhibition... ‘Comparative Hell’ immerses viewers in a realm aesthetically transcendent.”

—The Wall Street Journal

Exhibit info