Now Open: Gateway to Himalayan Art, Minnesota

On September 12 Gateway to Himalayan Art opened at the Flaten Art Museum at St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota, where it will be on view through December 7, 2025. The sixth iteration of the Rubin’s traveling exhibition welcomes students, professors, and the local public to learn about the main forms, concepts, meanings, and religious traditions of Himalayan art with objects from the Rubin’s collection. 

The exhibition invites exploration of diverse cultural spheres of the greater Himalayan region through exemplary objects presented in three thematic sections: Symbols and Meanings, Materials and Technologies, and Living Practices. Also included are multimedia features such as videos of art making and religious and cultural practices, audio recordings of voices from Himalayan communities that highlight living traditions, along with connections to related digital content to dive deeper.

“The Flaten Art Museum is proud to partner with the Rubin Museum to bring Gateway to Himalayan Art to St. Olaf College,” said Jane Becker Nelson,  director of the Flaten Art Museum. “By showcasing underrepresented Tibetan and Himalayan art traditions, we’re not only filling a crucial gap in Asian art curricula but also celebrating Minnesota’s vibrant Tibetan community—the second largest in the United States. This exhibition creates meaningful connections between our students, alumni, and local community members while offering rich opportunities to explore diverse faith traditions and cultural values. In our increasingly interconnected world, this collaboration demonstrates how museums can transcend traditional boundaries to foster engagement with global cultures right here in Northfield.”

Gateway to Himalayan Art was curated by Elena Pakhoutova, the Rubin’s senior curator, Himalayan art, who also attended the opening and provided an exhibition tour to St. Olaf and nearby Carleton College faculty. “It was great to see the exhibition opened, the result of a long process that started with professor Karil Kucera when we presented Project Himalayan Art and Gateway to Himalayan Art at the ASIANetwork conference in 2020,” said Pakhoutova. “Karil was also a participant in the Rubin’s Institute for Higher Education this past summer and is now even more prepared to teach with the exhibition and help other professors in the area to organize and plan their classes and student visits.”

Gateway to Himalayan Art is an integral component of the Rubin’s Project Himalayan Art, a three-part initiative that also includes the publication Himalayan Art in 108 Objects and a digital platform. Together they provide introductory resources for learning about and teaching Himalayan art. The exhibition will travel next to the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art at the University of Oregon, where it will open February 2026.