New York’s Rubin Museum Specializing in Himalayan Art to Close This Fall to Become a ‘Museum Without Walls’
- Founded by Shelley and Donald Rubin two decades ago, it houses the largest and most important collections of Himalayan art, and a permanent collection focused on Tibetan art.
The New York City-based Rubin Museum of Art, which houses one of the world’s largest and most important collections of Himalayan art, is closing its doors this October. Although the museum will shut its Manhattan building, it will “become a museum without walls,” executive director Jorrit Britschgi said in a statement. “This has been a difficult decision, especially given the departure of some of the staff that have made this place so exceptional,” he said. “Ultimately, this decision will allow us to serve more people, digitally and in person.”
Founded by Shelley and Donald Rubin two decades ago, the museum is “dedicated to the collection, display, and preservation of the art and cultures of the Himalayas, the Indian subcontinent, Central Asia and other regions within Eurasia, with a permanent collection focused particularly on Tibetan art,” according to its website. It houses nearly 4,000 Himalayan art objects, introducing visitors to elaborate paintings, religious sculptures, and iconography from the region. “The art in our galleries teaches us that change is constant and inevitable,” Britschgi said. “We take inspiration from this, as we boldly let go of an old model and redefine what it means to be a museum in the 21st century.”
The museum will expand its research and further invest in videos, podcasts, essays and other educational resources. It committed to “supporting and elevating” contemporary artists exploring Himalayan art. It promised to “not change” its mission “to broadly share Himalayan art, its cultural context, and the insights it provides for humanity.” The museum said it will continue “to care for, study, and share our collection,” and “keep on curating, creating, and traveling Rubin projects.” It also hoped to “find a new permanent home for our Tibetan Buddhist Shrine Room in New York City in the coming months.”
The museum sought to allay fears about its finances in a frequently asked questions section on the website. “The Rubin is proud to be in a strong financial position with a healthy endowment / sustaining fund, on which we can continue to build in decades to come,” it said. The decision to close the museum building is “a result of realigning” its resources “to best serve our mission for the long term,” it added.
It also denied that the closure is related to provenance questions or recent repatriations. It recently repatriated three items in its collection that were determined to have been stolen, “including a wooden carving returned to the Itumbaha monastery in Kathmandu, Nepal,” CNN reported. “The Rubin vehemently opposes the trafficking of stolen or looted cultural items,” it said, adding that it remains committed “to the ongoing research of the provenance or ownership history of our collection.”