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SALISBURY, MD--In Chinese astrology, 2001 is the year of the snake, symbol of wisdom and evil. At ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½ it’s a semester spotlighting "Asia," that today is giving the world everything from the latest trends in decorating, to philosophies and medical practices challenging Western establishment thinking, to artists and athletes whose precise performances are saying to America, "We’re Number One!"

There is no one Asia, but many, and the ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½ fall cultural affairs program reflects this diversity. The unquestioned highlight of the semester, according to June Krell-Salgado, ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½ cultural affairs coordinator who put together the program, is the visit by 11 monks of Tibet’s famed Drepung Loseling Monastery, who will be in residence November 12-17. These fabulous multiphonic singers whose sellout performances in Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center received national acclaim, have made ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½ part of their international tour of "Sacred Music Sacred Dance," which is sponsored by Richard Gere Productions Inc. and the Drepung Loseling Institute, the North American Seat of the Dreprung Loseling Monastery, with the blessings of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. In the past, the monks have performed with Paul Simon, Philip Glass, Patti Smith, the Beastie Boys, and the Grateful Dead’s Mickey Hart, to name a few. Two of their recordings achieved top 10 listings on the New Age charts and the monks participated in the soundtrack of the film Seven Years in Tibet, starring Brad Pitt, and performed to an audience of 50,000 on the National Mall, Washington, D.C., as part of last year’s 2000 Fourth of July celebration.

During this busy week, the 11 monks will construct a mandala in the University Gallery, a painstaking ceremony where millions of grains of colored sand are laid out in a complex pattern or mandala, which they believe helps promote world healing and peace. The public is invited to view the entire process throughout and participate in any of its six ceremonies. The monks will also lecture on the symbolism of the sand.

"I feel the series is a wonderful opportunity for students, the campus and community to immerse themselves in another culture and to learn something about others, and themselves, " said Krell-Salgado.

Throughout the semester lectures, movies, exhibits, bus trips and even dinners will explore the traditions and contradictions of today’s Asia. Below is a listing of events. All programs are subject to change and should be verified. For more information contact the University’s Office of Cultural Affairs and Museum Programs at 410-543-6271 or visit the ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½ Web site at www.salisbury.edu

Asian Art Exhibits:

October 5 – November 5 – Mega Morning Calm: Fourteen Korean American painters exhibiting contemporary modern paintings. Opening reception, Friday, October 5, 5-7 p.m. University Gallery, Fulton Hall.

October 19 - November 17 – The Mystical Arts of Tibet: Magical Land of Spiritual Wonders: Photo exhibit. See Tibetan monks’ residency. Atrium Gallery, Guerrieri University Center.

November 12 – 17 – The Mystical Arts of Tibet: Mandala Sand Paintings: See Tibetan monks’ residency. University Gallery, Fulton Hall.

Fulton Hall Gallery hours, Tuesday-Friday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Saturday and Sunday, noon-4 p.m.

Atrium Gallery hours, Tuesday-Friday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m., Saturday and Sunday, noon-4 p.m.

Admission is free and the public is invited.

Asian Lecture Series:

Wednesday, September 26, 7 p.m. - Bonsai: Wicomico Room, GUC,  Les Lutz, director of horticulture at ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½, is former curator of Bonsai at Longwood Gardens.

Wednesday, October 3, 7 p.m. - Buddhist-Hindu Dialogue on Ecology: Wicomico Room, GUC, Drs. Deepak Sarma and Duncan Williams Sarma teaches Asian philosophy at ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½ and Williams, of Trinity College, is an expert on Green Buddhism.

Tuesday, October 23 - Feng Shui: Wicomico Room, GUC, 7 p.m. Jeannie Marie Tower, certified Feng Shui consultant, interior alignment specialist and bau-biologist.

Wednesday, October 31 - Business in Asia: Wicomico Room, GUC, 7 p.m., Perdue export manager Mitch Boswell.

Thursday, November 1 - Acupuncture, Reflexology and Chinese Herbs: Wicomico Room, GUC, 7 p.m., Dr. Eleanor Stump on different aspects of Asian medicine.

Tuesday, November 13 - Mandala Sand Painting: The Symbolism of the Sand: Wicomico Room, GUC, 7 p.m., Lecture by the monks of the Drepung Loseling Monastery. 

Thursday, November 15 - China: Wicomico Room, GUC, 7 p.m., Dr. Melvin Ang, former ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½ history faculty and current member of the U.S. State Department.

All lectures are free and the public is invited.

Tibetan Monks’ Residency:

Eleven Tibetan monks from the famed Drepung Loseling Institute, with blessings from His Holiness the Dalai Lama, are in residence at ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½ Nov. 12 – 17.

October 19 - November 17 – The Mystical Arts of Tibet: Magical Land of Spiritual Wonders: An exhibit of 21 stunning photographs of Tibet from the London Image Bank to complement the monks’ visit.

Atrium Gallery, Guerrieri University Center.

November 12 – 17 – The Mystical Arts of Tibet: Mandala Sand Painting: University Gallery, Fulton Hall.

1. Opening Ceremony – Monday, November 12, Noon

2. Drawing of the Lines – Immediately following Opening Ceremony.

3. Mandala Construction – Monday, November 12 – Friday, November 16, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.

4. Mandala Consecration – Saturday, November 17, Noon

5. Closing Ceremony – Saturday, November 17, 2 p.m.

6. Dispersal Ceremony – Saturday, November 17, immediately following. Location TBA.

Tuesday, November 13 - Mandala Sand Painting: The Symbolism of the Sand: Wicomico Room, GUC, 7 p.m., Lecture by the monks of the Drepung Loseling Monastery.

Saturday, November 17 - Sacred Music Sacred Dance for World Healing: Holloway Hall Auditorium, 7 p.m., The famed multiphonic singers/dancers of Drepung Loseling Monestary

Admission free and open to the public.

Asian - Related Bus Trips:

Saturday, November 3 - New York City Opera: Turandot, Suitors are losing their heads over Chinese Princess Turandot and her three riddles set in ancient Beijing in Puccini’s spectacular final work.

Thursday, October 11 - Philadelphia Museum of Art: "In the Footsteps of Buddha"- a guided tour in the Museum and a visit to the Japanese House and Garden in Philadelphia’s Fairmont Park

Saturday, October 20 - The Kennedy Center, Washington, D.C.:  The Silk Road Project conceived and conducted by Yo-Yo Ma.

Trips are subject to availability. For more information call 410-548-2547.

International Film Series:

ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½’s International Films Series focuses this semester on movies from the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and Taiwan. The series is selected and organized by Dr. Jim Welsh. "I like what these films say about life in very turbulent times," he said. "My feeling is, if a film works, it doesn’t matter what culture it comes from." All are in Chinese with subtitles.

September 17--Stage Sisters (director: Xie Jin, PRC, 1965): The fortunes of two sisters in pre-revolutionary China who are separated by money and politics. Xie Jin is considered the most popular filmmaker in China.

October 8-- Yellow Earth (director: Chen Kaige, PRC, 1984): The landmark film of China’s "Fifth Generation," Yellow Earth is the story of a young Red Army soldier studying in a small village in 1937 who changes the life of a young woman. This was the first film by the director of Farewell to My Concubine.

October 15-- A Time to Live, A Time to Die (director: Hou Hsiao-hsien, Taiwan, 1985): This depiction of childhood and adolescence won the Golden Bear Award at the Berlin Film Festival.

October 29-- Good Men, Good Women (Hou Hsiao-hsien, 1995): The final film of Hou’s trilogy traces the modern history of Taiwan through the life of a film actress. It was named Best Film at the Hawaii Film Festival.

November 12 --The Puppetmaster (Hou Hsiao-hsien, 1993): Based on the memoirs of 84-year old Li Tien-lu, Taiwan’s celebrated puppeteer and official "national treasure." According to J. Hoberman of the Village Voice, it is Hou’s greatest film.

November 26--The Emperor’s Shadow (Zhou Xiaowen, PRC, 1996): The most expensive film ever made in China, this opulent spectacle is a saga of two boyhood friends at the dawn of China’s dynastic history (circa 200 B.C.). One becomes emperor and the other a celebrated musician.

December 3--Yi Yi (A One and a Two, Edward Yang, Taiwan/Japan, 2000): A comedy centered on a "typical" Taipei family, Yi Yi was named Best Film of the Year by both A.O. Scott of the New York Times and Susan Sontag of Artforum, and Best Foreign Film by both the New York Film Critics Circle and the Los Angeles Film Critics Association. David Ansen of Newsweek called the film "Rich, funny, enormously humane."

All screenings are Mondays at 7 p.m. in Fulton Hall Auditorium (Room 111). Admission is free and the public is invited. For more information call 410-543-6271.

Juilliard Series: Highlighting Young Asian Performers

Wednesday, October, 24 - Cellist, Yu-Jeong Lee,
Great Hall, Holloway Hall, 7 p.m.

Wednesday, December 12 - The Alma Trio
Featuring Gloria Yi-Chen Lin, piano, Soo Hyun Kwon, violin and Jesus Castro Balbi, cellist, Wicomico Room, GUC, 7 p.m.

Admission is free and the public is invited .

For information call 410-543-6271