Department of South and Southeast Asian Art Records

Dorothy H. Fickle came to the museum as an research fellow” in 1981, focusing primarily on the South and Southeast Asian art objects in the collection. She was appointed as the museum’s first Assistant Curator of Indian and Southeast Asian Art in 1983, and the Department of South and Southeast Asia was officially established as its own distinct department, an offshoot from what was previously known as the Oriental Art Department. During Fickle’s time as curator, the department saw a renovation of the Indian galleries in 1984 and featured several exhibitions. These included Arts of the Islamic Book (1983), Tantric Buddhist Art of Nepal (1984), the well-attended Indian Paintings from the Permanent Collection, 1885-1986, and Gods, Guardians, and Lovers (1993), which showcased temple sculptures from North India. She also organized the American Council for Southern Asian Art (ACSAA) symposium in 1985, which was held at the museum and acquainted other scholars from around the world with the Nelson-Atkins’ South and Southeast Asian collection. Fickle retired in December of 1993.

In November of 1994, Dr. Doris Srinivasan was appointed as Curator of South and Southeast Asian Art. Soon after, she began organizing the “Tibetan Sand Mandala Project” which brought two Tibetan monks to the museum to construct the Wheel of Compassion Sand Mandala in Kirkwood Hall. The event drew national media attention to the museum. Additionally, Dr. Srinivasan worked with the special events department and local South Asian communities to organize the three-month long “Celebrating India and Pakistan: 50 Years of Independence” in 1997, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of South Asia’s independence from Great Britain and the founding of India and Pakistan. It ended with a “Mela” festival held both inside and outside in the sculpture park, which attracted over 2,500 people to the museum’s grounds for food, shopping, cultural demonstrations—including a Hindu marriage ceremony, and dancing. In 2000, Srinivasan organized the symposium on pre-Kushan art, “On the Cusp of an Era: The Pre Kushan-World." It included multiple public events and the exhibition Snake Goddesses of Ancient India (2000-2001).

Dr. Srinivasan left the museum in 2001, and the department once again fell under the Asian Art Department, until Kimberly Masteller was hired as the Jeanne McCray Beals Curator of South and Southeast Asian Art in December of 2008.