Of the whole Rubin Museum, my favorite part was seeing the shrine room exhibit. Although it was interesting to see the various Buddha statues and paintings throughout the galleries, getting to see the religious context behind the art made it more real. I am not very familiar with Buddhism, so being in that room helped me to better understand what kind of religious practices members of the community participated in.  The entire room felt very peaceful and serene with the dimmed candle lighting, dark wooden furniture, and pillow seating. In addition, the chanting music created a very holy, serious atmosphere. I very much appreciated all of the time and detail put into creating the different ornate elements (i.e. the pillars, applique craft, and wall art).

– Julia-Zoe Hung