For close to 60 years, the Bishop White Committee has enabled the ROM to steward and display the greatest collection of Japanese art in Canada. Together with the ROM, this passionate group of volunteers has established the Bishop White Committee Curator of Japanese Art & Culture—an endowed position that is the first of its kind in Canada.
“The creation of the Bishop White Committee Curatorship of Japanese Art & Culture is one of the many ways the Committee has been a catalyst for important acquisitions, research and gallery development at the ROM,” says Liz Mitchell, Committee Chair and ROM Trustee. “We are proud to help inspire appreciation for Japanese art and culture in perpetuity.”
The Bishop White Committee has generously donated more than $2.5 million to the ROM for the promotion of East Asian art, history, and culture. It is named in honour of Bishop William Charles White (1873–1960), the first keeper of the ROM’s Chinese collections.
In addition to the creation of the curatorship and to further honour their long-standing support and deep commitment, the H.H. Mu Far Eastern Library will be renamed the Bishop White Committee Library of East Asia. The H.H. Mu Collection continues to be Canada’s most important library for research on East Asian art, architecture and archaeology.
The ROM is creating a Japanese Art & Culture Fund to support the essential work of the new Bishop White Committee Curator of Japanese Art & Culture. To learn how you can help amplify our understanding and sharing of this unique culture, please contact Kathryn De Carlo at kathrynd@rom.on.ca or 416.586.5745.