North Wing

Stone and Scene

February 7, 2026 – October 4, 2026

The premise of this exhibition, displaying viewing stones with California Scene paintings from The Hilbert Collection, is inspired by the Japanese practice of presenting viewing stones with scrolls in a tokonoma, which is an alcove in a traditional Japanese home used for displaying flower arrangements, bonsai or stones accompanied by a scroll. The arrangements are typically thematic and seasonal.

The still life paintings exhibited here beside the tokonoma offer an opportunity to consider the similarities between the conventions of tokonoma display and the fundamentals of still life composition. The paintings and viewing stones flanking the adjacent doorway reference the Asian origins of viewing stone appreciation. Some of the arrangements in the gallery acknowledge the shared similarities of paintings and stones. Other pose questions about the reasons for their juxtaposition.