To access the related online publication, A Glimpse of Another World: A Journey Through Western Tibet (1938) by F. Bailey Vanderhoef, Jr. click here.
A Tibet Expedition 1938: Selected Gifts from Two Explorers
April 12 - August 17, 2008
Docent Tours:
July 1, 9, 15, 19, 24, 20 at noon.
July 6, 13, 20, 27 at 1 pm.
August 5, 14 at noon.
August 3, 10, 17 at 1 pm.
In June 1938, two young Americans, Wilbur L. Cummings, Jr. (1914 - 1943), and F. Bailey Vanderhoef, Jr. set off on an expedition into Tibet. Leaving from the small Indian hill station of Kalimpong, they crossed the Himalayas – their principal goal, to document the religious art and the famous “lama dances” in the city of Gyantse in western Tibet. The paintings, sculpture, and ritual objects brought back from their Tibet trip were donated to the Santa Barbara Museum of Art in 1954 and 1991 by the Cummings family and Bailey Vanderhoef, now forming the core of the Museum’s Tibetan art collection.
This exhibition commemorates the adventurers and their gifts in the context of their journey. While most of the ritual objects and sculpture are on display in the Asian galleries on the Museum’s Upper Level, this exhibition highlights select paintings (thangkas) and a few objects accompanied by photographs and journal entries. Thangkas are sacred pictures that were typically painted by anonymous artists who traveled all over Tibet, receiving commissions from monasteries as well as private patrons. The status and wealth of the patrons determined the quality of the thangkas through the choice of pigments, amount of gold used in embellishment, and the richness of the silk brocades on which the paintings were mounted.
The art of Tibet, and associated thangkas, are almost entirely based on the spirituality of Buddhism. Paintings and sculpture of various Buddhas, bodhisattvas, and numerous manifestations of gods and goddesses were created to serve multiple purposes. These images, some peaceful-looking and some with wrathful expressions, range in function from objects of devotion to symbols and personifications of Buddhist teachings. Many are used as visual aids in meditation and rituals to help practitioners advance towards the ultimate goal of release from rebirth, nirvana.
The momentous adventure that spurred the acquisition of these spiritual objects commenced when Cummings and Vanderhoef were students at Harvard in 1938, both 24 years and both with a fascination of and concentration on Asian Studies. An opportunity arose the students to accept freelance photography work in Tibet, so Vanderhoef and Cummings took advantage – both to complete the photography project, but to also do what interested them the most – to collect art.
The 3-month trip included a 6-week wait in Kalimpong, then British India, to gain permits to enter Tibet, then a rush to arrive in Gyantse in time for the Sagadawa festiaval and the viewing of the Great Thangka unveiling, which lasted a mere 2 hours every year. Their photographs of this festival and the dramatic unveiling of the painting appeared a year later in the June 12, 1939 edition of Life magazine, and had the elite distinction of being some of the first color images of Tibet to appear in the American popular press.
While their spirit of adventure fueled the journey, it was their love and interest in art that ignited the flame. They desired to purchase those items that were distinctively Tibetan, such as old thangkas, books with finely carved wooden covers, bronze sculptures, or silver, but found these items were not easily available, as they were typically part of religious settings and many monasteries and wealthy families were not amenable to parting with them.
However, a bit of resourcefulness – and cash – led them to discover that, as quoted by Vanderhoef, “…the older the things were the less expensive they were and that of course suited us perfectly.”
F. Bailey Vanderhoef, Jr.’s contributions to SBMA did not end with the works bestowed to the Museum from this adventure. As Life Honorary Trustee, major donor, and guiding force behind the Asian Collection, he has played an integral role in the life of the organization since the early 1950s. Not only has he served on the Exhibition and Acquisitions Committee since joining the Board of Trustees in 1954, he curated the exhibitions Tibetan Art in 1955 and Oriental Lacquer in 1976, and wrote the corresponding catalogues. On the occasion of the Museum’s 50th anniversary in 1991, he made a gift of 108 Asian objects from his outstanding personal collection, representing the single largest donation of Asian art in the Museum’s history. Because of Vanderhoef’s significant contributions of time, knowledge, and generous contributions, SBMA honored him as the recipient of the Wright S. Ludington Award in 1998.
This exhibition is presented concurrently with a special academic course focusing on Tibetan and Himalayan art at UC Santa Barbara. It also coincides with the online publication of A Glimpse of Another World: A Journey Through Western Tibet (1938) by F. Bailey Vanderhoef, Jr. located at the link www.religion.ucsb.edu/tibetjourney1938/. The exhibition and the publication were assisted by the Museum’s Oral History Project and students from the Department of Religious Studies at UCSB under the direction of Professor José Ignacio Cabezón.
Related programming:
Sunday, May 4, 2:30 – 3:30 pm
Images of Padmasambhava in Tibetan Painting
Padmasambhava’s role in Tibetan Buddhism is extremely varied and multi-faceted. He represents one of the Tibetan alternatives for Buddhahood and is considered foremost among those elements that give Tibetan Buddhism its characteristic, localized flavor. Dr. Christian Luczanits, visiting professor at the Department of History of Art and Architecture at UCSB, will present an illustrated lecture on Tibetan painting, focusing on images of Padmasambhava, Lotus-Born Buddha.
Sunday, May 18, 2:30 – 3:30 pm
The Legacy of F. Bailey Vanderhoef’s Journey to Western Tibet 1938
José Ignacio Cabezón, XIV Dalai Lama Professor of Tibetan Buddhism and Cultural Studies in the Religious Studies Department, will present an illustrated lecture on F. Bailey Vanderhoef’s journey to Tibet in 1938 through the explorer’s writings and photographs. On the occasion of the exhibition, A Tibet Expedition 1938: Selected Gifts from Two Explorers, Professor Cabezón made possible the online publication of Vanderhoef's memoir, A Glimpse of Another World: A Journey Through Western Tibet (1938), a vivid record of one young American’s impression of the peoples, cultures and landscapes of Tibet and the Himalayas at a specific time in history.
These lectures are co-sponsored by the Museum’s Friends of Asian Art and presented in conjunction with the exhibition.
Location: Mary Craig Auditorium
$5 SBMA Members, $7 Non-Members, Free for FOAA
Tickets may be purchased at the Admission Desks in person or by credit card by calling 884.6423.