Museum Collections of the United States
So far there are sixty-seven (67) museums in twenty-three (23) states that have been identified as having collections of Himalayan & Tibetan style art. It is likely that there are a number of other museums out there not yet identified. Twenty-one (21) of these museums, with images from their collections, are currently represented on the Himalayan Art Resources (HAR) website. Locating and researching all of the museum collections in the United States is an important and ongoing project. The HAR staff will continuie to contact and work with other museums in the United States, Canada and around the world, to encourage their participation in this global cultural endeavor.
The HAR Team (original document Spring 2001, last updated April 29th 2009)
Arizona
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Florida
Illinois
Georgia
Indiana
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Missouri
Nebraska
New Jersey
New York
North Carolina
Ohio
Pennsylvania
Texas
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
Washington, DC
Arizona
Phoenix Art Museum
A collection of over 100 sculpture and approximately 20 paintings.
California
Asian Art Museum of San Francisco
Predominantly Sino-Tibetan, with over 100 paintings, sculpture and religious objects. San Francisco, California. (See images on HAR).Fowler Museum of Cultural History
Containing several hundred Tibetan objects. University of California. Los Angeles, California.Iris & B. Gerald Cantor Center for Visual Arts, Stanford University
Stanford, California. (See images on HAR).Los Angeles County Museum of Art
Exhibiting some of the finest Tibetan and Nepalese paintings in North America. Los Angeles, California. (See images on HAR).Norton Simon Museum of Art
Approximately 100 sculpture and miscellaneous religious objects. Pasadena, California.Pacific Asia Museum of Pasadena, California
A small collection of paintings, sculpture and artifacts.Phoebe A. Hearst Museum of Anthropology
Over 100 Tibetan religious objects. University of California. Berkeley, California.San Diego Museum of Art
With a small collection of 7 paintings and 8 sculpture. San Diego, California. (See images on HAR).Santa Barbara Museum of Art
Approximately 10 paintings, 10 sculpture and various ritual objects. Santa Barbara, California.
Colorado
Denver Art Museum
A collection of Tibetan & Nepalese paintings, sculpture and ritual objects. Denver, Colorado.
Connecticut
Peabody Museum of Natural History, Yale University
Over 230 Tibetan religious and secular objects. New Haven, Connecticut.
Florida
Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami
Museum of Asian Art
A collection of
sculpture and ritual objects. Miami, Florida.
"This not-for-profit, public museum opened in April 2000
in Sarasota, Florida houses a stunning collection of Asian sculpture
China, Cambodia, Myanmar (Burma), Nepal and Thailand."
Georgia
Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University
A small collection of paintings and sculpture. Atlanta, Georgia.
Illinois
The Art Institute of Chicago
With a small Tibetan collection of approximately 12 paintings and 30 sculpture. The Nepalese collection however has one of the largest holdings of sculpture in North America.
The Field Museum
With dozens of Tibetan paintings and sculpture. Several thousand objects in total. Chicago, Illinois.
Indiana
Antoinette K. Gordon Collection (Indiana University)
Over 60 paintings, sculpture and religious objects. Bloomington, Indiana.Evansville Museum of Arts & Science
Various Tibetan religious artifacts. Evansville, Indiana.Mathers Museum of World Cultures
Predominantly Tibetan masks, musical instruments and ritual objects. Bloomington, Indiana.
Maryland
Baltimore Museum of Art
A small collection of paintings and sculpture. Baltimore, Maryland.The Walters Art Museum
A small original collection with 6 paintings and 3 miscellaneous objects and the gift of the John and Berthe Ford collection. Baltimore, Maryland. (See images on HAR).Washington County Museum of Fine Arts
Included in the permanent collection are 10 Tibetan paintings. Hagerstown, Maryland.
Massachusetts
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
Approximately 154 paintings and 50 sculpture. Boston, Massachusetts. (See images on HAR).Peabody Essex Museum
With over 350 Tibetan objects and 300 Bhutanese objects. Salem, Massachusetts.Peabody Museum of Archaeology & Ethnology
Over 385 Tibetan objects. Cambridge, Massachusetts.Rose Art Museum, Brandeis University
Approximately 200 Tibetan art works including paintings, sculpture and religious objects. Waltham, Massachusetts.Smith College Museum of Art
With a small collection of paintings and sculpture. Northampton, Massachusetts.
Michigan
Detroit Institute of Arts
Paintings and artifacts. Detroit, Michigan.University of Michigan Museum of Anthropology
Over 70 Tibetan Buddhist paintings of the Koelz Collection, acquired during the early part of the last century, and over 100 sculpture and ritual objects. (See images on HAR).University of Michigan Museum of Art
With a small collection of 19 objects there are 7 paintings and 4 sculpture. Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Missouri
Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art
Amongst the numerous Tibetan objects are 28 paintings and 27 sculpture. Kansas City, Missouri. (See images on HAR).The Saint Louis Art Museum
Containing 13 paintings and 18 sculpture. St.Louis, Missouri.
Nebraska
University of Nebraska State Museum
A small collection of Tibetan religious objects. Lincoln, Nebraska.
New Jersey
Montclair Art Museum
A small collection of paintings and ritual objects. Montclair, New Jersey.The Newark Museum
Well over 10 thousand Himalayan artifacts including paintings, sculpture and ritual objects. Newark, New Jersey.
New York
* New York City Museum Guide - Outline Page
An outline page visually listing and linking all of the Himalayan art sites in New York City and the surrounding area.The American Museum of Natural History
Approximately 500 plus Himalayan art style paintings from Tibet, Mongolia and China and over 500 sculpture. Counting ritual objects and household items there are likely over 3,600 objects in total. (See Images and Quick Guide Outline on HAR).Asia Society
Some of the finest pieces of Kashmiri sculpture in the world. (See images on HAR).Brooklyn Museum of Art
Over 30 Tibetan tangkas in the permanent collection. (See images on HAR).Jacques Marchais Museum of Tibetan Art
The first museum in North America dedicated to Tibetan art.
Rubin Museum of Art
The first museum in the Western World dedicated to the art of the Himalayas and surrounding regions. (See images and Quick Guide Outline on HAR).The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Paintings, sculpture and objects. (See images and Quick Guide Outline on HAR).New York City Public Library
A collection of Naxi death scrolls and Tibetan initiation cards.Nicholas Roerich Museum
Objects from the Himalayas and Central Asia collected during the travels of Nicholas Roerich. (See images on HAR).Parrish Art Museum
A small collection of 6 Tibetan paintings. Southampton, New York.Tibet House, New York
Over 100 paintings and sculpture in the Repatriation Collection. (See images on HAR).
North Carolina
Ackland Art Museum, Chapel Hill
A small collection of paintings and sculpture with a large and impressive Tibetan sculpture of the Indian Mahasiddha Damarupa.
Ohio
Cincinnati Art Museum
A small collection of several paintings and sculpture. Cincinnati, Ohio.The Cleveland Museum of Art
A small collection of 8 tangkas and over 20 sculpture and ritual objects. Cleveland, Ohio.Dayton Art Institute
A small collection of paintings, sculpture and ritual objects. Dayton, Ohio.Denison University
A small collection of over 50 paintings, sculpture, ritual objects, textiles and household items. Granville, Ohio.Toledo Museum of Art
A small collection of 6 paintings and several sculpture. Toledo, Ohio.
Pennsylvania
Erie Art Museum
Including a collection of 105 paintings. (See images on HAR).Philadelphia Museum of Art
With approximately 40 fine Tibetan paintings, 30 Nepalese paintings and 150 sculpture. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (See images on HAR).Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art
Over 60 Tibetan paintings including some rare iconographic forms. (See images on HAR).University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology
With a collection of approximately 300 Tibetan objects, over 70 Buddhist and Bon paintings along with other Himalayan artifacts. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Texas
Dallas Museum of Art
A very solid and comprehensive collection of sculpture with a few paintings. (See images on HAR)The Crow Collection of Asian Art, The Trammell & Margaret Crow Collection of Asian Art
A collection of sculpture and ritual objects. (See images on HAR).The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston
A collection of unknown size and objects.
Vermont
Middlebury College Art Museum
A small collection of objects. Middlebury, Vermont.
Virginia
University of Virginia Art Museum
Charlottesville, Virginia.
Virginia Museum of Fine Art
A very fine Tibetan collection. The original holdings began with 24 paintings many of which were owned by G.Tucci. Richmond, Virginia.
Washington
The Burke Museum of Natural History & Culture
With a collection of 190 Tibetan objects including 90 paintings and numerous sculpture. Seattle, Washington.
Seattle Art Museum
Containing a small collection of paintings, sculpture and miscellaneous religious objects. Seattle, Washington.
Washington, DC
Freer Gallery of Art / Arthur M. Sackler Gallery
Paintings and sculpture from Tibet, Nepal and China. (See Arthur M. Sackler and Freer Gallery images. Quick Guide Outline on HAR).Library of Congress
A large collection of Naxi texts and images and one Tibetan painting.
Copyright © Shelley and Donald Rubin Foundation.