Japan experts craft 'super clone' of destroyed Afghan mural
The First Art Newspaper on the Net    Established in 1996 Wednesday, November 13, 2024


Japan experts craft 'super clone' of destroyed Afghan mural
A replica of a Buddhist mural destroyed by the Taliban is intended to salvage the work's "spirit" for future generations Charly TRIBALLEAU AFP.

by Shingo Ito



TOKYO.- Japanese researchers have crafted a "super clone" of an Afghan mural destroyed by the Taliban, using a mix of traditional and digital techniques that they hope will salvage the work's "spirit" for future generations.

Not a single fragment remains of the seventh-century cave painting demolished in 2001 along with two massive Buddha statues and other artefacts in Afghanistan's Bamiyan valley, sparking global condemnation.

But a precise replica, the result of three years of state-of-the-art reproduction efforts, went on display at a museum in Tokyo in September and October, just weeks after the Taliban returned to power in Kabul.

The mural on the ceiling of a cave near the famous statues depicted a blue Bodhisattva -- or someone on the path to becoming a Buddha.

At six metres long and three metres high (20 by 10 feet), the intricate full-size copy has been dubbed a "super clone" by the reproduction team at Tokyo University of the Arts.

"We have succeeded in recreating a very precise representation in three dimensions," from its texture to the type of paint, said the team's co-leader Takashi Inoue.

Japan is a major donor to Afghanistan and has long been involved in heritage protection efforts at Bamiyan, a crossroads of ancient civilisations considered to be one of the birthplaces of Japanese Buddhism.

The team digitally processed more than 100 photographs taken by Japanese archaeologists of the mural before it was desecrated, to create a computerised model of its surface.

They then fed this data into a machine, which carved the exact shape into a styrofoam block.

To complete the replica, artists applied a traditional paint in a lapis lazuli shade similar to the one used for the original mural.

Through this process, "we can reproduce designs that are very close to the real ones again and again, to hand down their spirit to future generations," said Inoue, a professor specialised in Eurasian cultural heritage.

"Let's stop vandalism. Let's preserve priceless culture -- the heritage of mankind -- together."




'Everything can be digitalised'

Days ahead of the withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan in August, the Taliban overran Kabul, sparking fears of a return to their brutal reign of 1996 to 2001.

The new regime insists it wants to protect archaeological heritage from destruction.

For historian Kosaku Maeda, a co-leader of the Tokyo reproduction team, the "massively shocking" images of the giant Buddhas disappearing into clouds of dust are still a vivid memory.

"I was worried that such an act would be inflicted on the remains once again," said the 88-year-old, who has visited the valley repeatedly for more than half a century.

But their work shows that vandalism is "meaningless" in the face of modern technology, as "everything can be digitalised", he said.

On a recent visit to Bamiyan by AFP journalists, Taliban gunmen stood guarding the rock cavities that once housed the two Buddha statues.

Construction work on a $20-million UNESCO-backed cultural centre and museum was still under way in Bamiyan when the AFP team visited the area in October -- although its planned inauguration this year was delayed by the Taliban takeover.

Maeda said his dream is to build a separate "peace museum" in the valley and, if possible, display the replica cave painting there.

"We can't put it back in its original place, but I want to bring it to Bamiyan as a historical legacy that local people can inherit," said Maeda, also a member of UNESCO's committee for the safeguarding of Afghan cultural heritage.

"A nation stays alive when its culture stays alive," he added, reciting the message written on a banner hung at the entrance of the National Museum of Afghanistan in Kabul.


© Agence France-Presse










Today's News

November 18, 2021

Largest collection of Fabergé Easter Eggs in a generation on display in major exhibition

One of the earliest photographic portraits taken in America sells in archive realizing $300,000

They love crypto. They're trying to buy the Constitution.

Toronto Biennial of Art announces confirmed artists for its second edition on view March 26-June 5, 2022

Tel Aviv Museum of Art opens a comprehensive survey of the work of Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama

Gagosian to launch picture books imprint in collaboration with Emma Cline

MOCA North Miami opens first retrospective to examine all periods of Maryan's life and work

Museum-quality 20-pound gold nugget, the largest ever discovered in Alaska, heads to auction

Freeman's American Art Week led by marquee names from single-owner collections

Extremely rare sea silk material to be offered in Hindman Couture Auction

Storm King Art Center announces Nora Lawrence new artistic director and chief curator

Great Danes: Kunstmuseum Den Haag exhibits porcelain masterpieces made in Copenhagen 1890-1930

Pera Museum's new exhibition titled "The Art of Weights and Measures" examines the act of measuring and weighing

Ed Bullins, leading playwright of the Black Arts Movement, dies at 86

E-buggies replace horse carts at Jordan's Petra

Japan experts craft 'super clone' of destroyed Afghan mural

Rare Hermès Birkin bags lead holiday luxury accessories event

Retrospective of Philip Tsiaras 'Superdot' series exhibited in London for first time

The Approach opens an exhibition of paintings and drawings by Bill Lynch

Sapar Contemporary opens the gallery's second solo exhibition of work by Azerbaijani artist Faig Ahmed

Tiwani Contemporary opens the first solo exhibition of British artist Charmaine Watkiss at the gallery

Marcel Odenbach awarded the 2021 Wolfgang Hahn Prize

Raúl Rivero, disenchanted poet of the Cuban revolution, dies at 75

Philip Margo of the Tokens, who sang of a snoozing lion, dies at 79

How To Digitally Market Your Art

What are Grandparents' Rights in the UK to Reconnect with Grandchildren

Advantages of the online casino without registration

Men's and handcrafted: here are next year's jewelry trends

Ecommerce product photography guide take picture attract convert customers

The Insight Into OSCAR 2022 Predictions

Ways To Make Time for Yourself as an Entrepreneur




Museums, Exhibits, Artists, Milestones, Digital Art, Architecture, Photography,
Photographers, Special Photos, Special Reports, Featured Stories, Auctions, Art Fairs,
Anecdotes, Art Quiz, Education, Mythology, 3D Images, Last Week, .

 



Founder:
Ignacio Villarreal
(1941 - 2019)
Editor & Publisher: Jose Villarreal
Art Director: Juan José Sepúlveda Ramírez
Writer: Ofelia Zurbia Betancourt

Royalville Communications, Inc
produces:

ignaciovillarreal.org juncodelavega.com facundocabral-elfinal.org
Founder's Site. Hommage
to a Mexican poet.
Hommage
       

The First Art Newspaper on the Net. The Best Versions Of Ave Maria Song Junco de la Vega Site Ignacio Villarreal Site
Tell a Friend
Dear User, please complete the form below in order to recommend the Artdaily newsletter to someone you know.
Please complete all fields marked *.
Sending Mail
Sending Successful