 |  | This month, two new thought-provoking exhibitions are opening. The interactive exhibition Seeing in Art and Medicine (September 2–December 30, 2023) brings together objects that medical residents have studied as part of the museums’ medical humanities program, focusing on questions about human relationships, emotions, and beliefs. For a deeper look into the exhibition, take this workshop about the representation of skin color in art and medicine.
Objects of Addiction: Opium, Empire, and the Chinese Art Trade (September 15, 2023–January 14, 2024) looks at the entwined histories of the opium trade and the Chinese art market between the late 18th and early 20th centuries. Make sure to check the calendar for a variety of engaging related programs, such as a lecture by curator Sarah Laursen and a roundtable discussion about the current opioid crisis in New England.
We look forward to seeing you there.
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 | Opening Saturday, September 2, Seeing in Art and Medicine invites visitors to view works from the collections along the themes of the Seeing in Art and Medical Imaging program, such as narrative, objectivity, embodiment, empathy, power, ambiguity, and care. Try your hand at close-looking activities in this interactive exhibition. |
 | Objects of Addiction: Opium, Empire, and the Chinese Art Trade explores how the commodities of opium and Chinese art between the 18th and early 20th centuries had profound effects on the global economy, cultural landscape, and education—and in the case of opium, on public health and immigration—that still reverberate today. |
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 | Join associate curator Sarah Laursen for a lecture on Thursday, September 14, about opium and Chinese art—two influential commodities traded in China, the British Empire, and Massachusetts between the 18th and early 20th centuries. Free admission, but seating is limited and available on a first-come, first-served basis. |
 | Join us on Saturday, September 16 with drama therapists Ana Bess Moyer Bell and Amy Lazier of the artist collective 2nd Act for a workshop designed to challenge participants’ ideas about addiction through a drama therapy model. Registration opens Wednesday, September 6. |
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 | Bring your friends (and maybe a sweater!) for Harvard Art Museums at Night on Thursday, September 28 for a free evening of art, fun, food, and more! Each night features a new mix of local talent and community partners to make this a festive occasion for all. |
 | Want to learn more about the works on view in our galleries? Spotlight Tours, such as this one led by Emily Feng, offer a chance to explore the collections of the Harvard Art Museums through the eyes of a Harvard student. Free and open to the public, these tours take place on Saturdays and Sundays at 11am and 2pm. |
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 | | Aspiring U.S. citizens! The Harvard Art Museums, in partnership with the St. Mark Community Education Program, are pleased to offer a free 10-week course to prepare for the citizenship exam through art starting on Saturday, September 16. |
 | Join us for a gallery talk about works of art in Seeing in Art and Medicine, with curator Jen Thum. You will gain insights about the museums’ medical humanities program—on which the exhibition is based—and what can be gleaned through close looking. |
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Images: Seeing in Art and Medicine: Rosemarie Trockel, German, Shutter (c), 2006. Stoneware with red glaze. Harvard Art Museums/Busch-Reisinger Museum, Purchase through the generosity of Wilhelm Winterstein, 2006.236. © Rosemarie Trockel/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. September At Night: Photo: Caitlin Cunningham Photography. Looking with Empathy: Fazal Sheikh, American, Akuot Nyibol, Riak Warabek, and Athok Duom, 1992. Archival pigment print. Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Richard and Ronay Menschel Fund for the Acquisition of Photographs, 2020.4. © Fazal Ilahi Sheikh.
Support for Objects of Addiction: Opium, Empire, and the Chinese Art Trade is provided by the Alexander S., Robert L., and Bruce A. Beal Exhibition Fund; the Robert H. Ellsworth Bequest to the Harvard Art Museums; the Harvard Art Museums’ Leopold (Harvard M.B.A. ’64) and Jane Swergold Asian Art Exhibitions and Publications Fund and an additional gift from Leopold and Jane Swergold; the José Soriano Fund; the Anthony and Celeste Meier Exhibitions Fund; the Gurel Student Exhibition Fund; the Asian Art Discretionary Fund; the Chinese Art Discretionary Fund; and the Rabb Family Exhibitions Fund. Related programming is supported by the M. Victor Leventritt Lecture Series Endowment Fund. Additional support for this project is provided by the Dunhuang Foundation.
Support for Seeing in Art and Medicine is provided by the José Soriano Fund, the Gurel Student Exhibition Fund, and the Annemarie Henle Pope Special Exhibitions Fund. Related programming is supported by the M. Victor Leventritt Lecture Series Endowment Fund and the Richard L. Menschel Endowment Fund.
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