As its annual winter exhibit, the Hermitage will display two Sloane family-member jade collections, side by side, as East Meets West. With its majestic and exotic associations, Chinese jade has enjoyed a long-standing history as a treasured art form.  Well-known for the skill required to maneuver such a difficult medium, visitors experience first-hand jade’s renaissance in Western culture.

Of those entranced by this art form, Florence Sloane and her son, William Sloane, Jr., found jade irresistible, and made it a sizable portion of their respective art collections. Florence, intensely interested in the Asian arts, amassed her collection for display at the Hermitage in Norfolk, Virginia. William, settled in Texas with his wife, gifted his collection at his passing to the Waco-McClennan County Library of Waco, Texas.

The exhibit will explore the aesthetics of the stone, the arduous processes used to create the intricate designs and of course, the unique and innate beauty of this admired art-form.  This wonderful complexity continues to amaze all who appreciate jade’s fine craftsmanship.