South Asian Art?

[heyheythrowaway24]

Herro fwends!

 

Currently an M.A. student in the U.K. at SOAS, looking at doing my PhD in South Asian Art in the US. Wondering if anyone knows what the good programs are? UPenn has Michael Meister, so I'm def applying there, and I hear that Cornell is pretty great too Any further suggestions? Thanks, y'all

[klondike]

Not in the US, but if you would also look at Canada, Katherine Hacker at the University of British Columbia is great.

[turner]

Sugata Ray at Berkeley is definitely and up-and-comer.

[i.put.the.stud.in.student]

Hi!

 

It's nice to see someone interested in South Asian Art, considering that applicants in the field are few (as compared to other specializations). 

 

In terms of which programs to apply to, it is completely dependent on what exactly you would like to work on- for example, your list of POI's for Mughal Painting would be almost COMPLETELY different than your list for temple architecture.

 

Since you mentioned Michael Meister, you should know that he is no longer taking on students. You might consider the world-renowned Vidya Dehejia (at Columbia), Nachiket Chanchani (at Michigan), Pika Ghosh (at UNC) and Tamara Sears (at Yale).

 

If you are considering painting, you might be interested in John Seyller (At Vermont), Molly Aitken (at CUNY) and the legendary Catherine Asher (at Minnesota).

 

And as mentioned above, Sugata Ray is wonderful.

 

I hope this helps, although nothing substitutes your own research and interests- these are mere suggestions.

 

All the best!! :D

[BenjaminL]

Look at the PhD advisers listed here...

 

http://caareviews.org/dissertations/346/in_progress

[heyheythrowaway24]

Thank you so much everyone!

 

Sugata Ray is definitely someone I'd love to work with, and I'm very interested in Nanchiket's work as well! These are all great suggestions, and a wonderful resource to begin my research. 

 

I know there's absolutely no way of knowing this, i.put.the.phd, but would you be able to hazard an approximate guess at how many applicants there typically are to the most popular programs? I imagine nowhere near the number who apply to the other fields, but keeping in mind that there are far fewer options to chose from...

 

Thanks again for all your suggestions!

[herbieoh]

Hello,

 

I definitely agree that those scholars listed above are great. But I like to add one more figure here.

Johns Hopkins has been well-known for its European and American centered scholarship. But there is one professor hired recently, Rebecca M. Brown. If you are considering South Asian art history, and especially thinking of a close mentoring between your advisor and you, then she would be a great advisor. 

[YepUrsi]

Cornell is good, they have a huge library dedicated to Asian studies. Other than that, check the rankings or ask people (professors of yours?) in your field I'd suggest

[brown_eyed_girl]

You may also want to look at U of Michigan (Nachiket Chanchani), NYU (Barry Flood, Dipti Khera), and UCLA (Saloni Mathur, Bob Brown). I'd also consider which schools are located in cities with substantial South Asian collections, and which schools have strong language and history departments to supplement the art history training (since few places have more than one South Asian specialist in Art History, and you may want to have adjacent fields available to you). Boston, NY, and LA all have very good South Asian museum collections, for example - which could prove a useful resource to your study and also be potential places to intern or work. 

[rbakshi]

Excellent replies on the topic. I'm going to add some Canadian schools specializing in South Asian art (of which two I've studied at).

 

The best South Asian program in Canada is at the University of Toronto. The Department of Art History boasts not one but two South Asianists, Dr. Kajri Jain (affiliated to UTM) and Dr. Deepali Dewan (affiliated to the ROM). Apart from Art History, Toronto boasts a strong South Asian presence in other departments, such as English, Economics, History, and Political Science. The language programs are equally strong with Sanskrit, Hindi, Urdu, Tamil, and Panjabi on offer at any given time (though not all languages are simultaneously offered except Sanskrit, which is based out of the Department of East Asian Civilizations). Furthermore, the Department of Near and Middle Eastern Civilizations is an excellent source for studies in Islamic South Asia. Toronto also houses a strong South Asian diaspora population, which is reflected in the arts and culture scene of the city, most notably with the Aga Khan Museum based there. In coming years, this will be a strong South Asia program like Minnesota in its heyday under the Ashers (which is not surprising because Dewan was a student of Catherine and Frederick Asher).

 

The next best program is at UBC (the University of British Columbia) with an equally strong South Asia focus. Dr. Katherine Hacker is the resident South Asianist in the Department of Art History. Other departments also have a strong South Asia focus, and like Toronto, UBC also houses a separate Centre for South Asia. Vancouver has an equally large South Asian population, which results in a vibrant cultural presence in Van's urban fabric. There is also Dr. Hussein Keshani at UBC-Okanagan, who specializes in Late Mughal/Islamic art and architecture. Last time I checked, UBC was looking to hire an Islamicist as well, whether s/he focuses on South Asia or not can be judged only after the hiring has been completed. That being said, if UBC doesn't actively recruit students in South Asian art, especially those coming from India/Pakistan (i.e. international students) and starts to diversify from its traditional leanings, it will soon lose out on its competitive edge, which is as it stands rather flimsy.

 

Finally, a strong contender for a South Asia focus is the University of Victoria. Dr. Anthony Welch is a authority on India's Early Sultanate (particularly Tughlaq) art and architecture, which he teaches in a series of undergraduate courses. His graduate seminars pertain to two major areas: Mughal India and Safavi Iran. Apart from him, the Department of Art History and Visual Culture boasts another Islamicist, Dr. Marcus Millwright, and a Southeast Asianist, Dr. Astri Wright. As far as I'm aware, UVic is one of few Canadian art history programs offering courses in Southeast Asian art. The Centre for Studies in Religion and Society (CSRS) along with the Department of History complement the research and teaching in South Asia, and if things work out, then, there'll be two more South Asianists at UVic (a historian and an art historian). Incidentally, Huseein Keshain (at UBC) studied with Dr. Welch at UVic. Moreover, UVic boasts a significant number of graduate students in South Asian art history (both masters and doctoral level). Many of these M.A. level students continue in doctoral programs in Canada, the U.S., and the U.K.. A major drawback, though, is that Victoria is a small town with limited off-campus opportunities, if any at all. Like Toronto, UVic is slowly broadening its South Asia focus by investing in archives, graduate students, and new faculty.

Edited March 9, 2015 by rbakshi

[nomad15]

Glad to have found this thread. I am planning to apply to a Phd program this year. I want to work on the 16th to the 19th century - so, my choices are limited to Rebecca M Brown (Johns Hopkins), Sugata Ray (Berkeley), and Dipti Khera (NYU). Any suggestions?

I have heard that, apart from Prof. Brown, Johns Hopkins is very conservative and horribly Eurocentric - as an earlier post mentioned. New York is great, and NYU has South Asia scholars - but from what I hear, the department is dysfunctional and there is little contact with other depts. Berkeley, on the other hand, seems to have a fairly dynamic and theoretically-savvy department - many seem interested in global art history. Apart from the obvious attraction of the Bay Area, I am especially interested in a rounded South Asia coursework. So I am also thinking of South Asia scholars in other Berkeley departments - Lawrence Cohen, Saba Mahmood, and others - who I could take classes with.

I am leaning towards Berkeley. Should one write to Prof. Ray before admission deadline? His interest in postcolonial and global theory, museum studies, and eco art history – all seem interesting and cuttingedge. I have heard him speak recently- unlike many South Asian specialists, he brought together material, art historical method, theory, and was able to talk to many disciplines. But does anyone have any sense of the Berkeley art history department?

[brown_eyed_girl]

I want to work on the 16th to the 19th century - so, my choices are limited to Rebecca M Brown (Johns Hopkins), Sugata Ray (Berkeley), and Dipti Khera (NYU). Any suggestions?

 

I don't think it's necessary to limit yourself this much - these scholars may be the best matches for your interests, but most professors are open to working with students who are interested in time periods/subfields other than those in which they specialize. For example, you may end up working with someone who has a different subfield from your own, but similar theoretical concerns. Or the person who is on paper the best match for your interests may have a difficult personality or not be taking students this year. I'm just saying I wouldn't write off applying to work with someone who's an expert in Hindu temples if they've been known to mentor dissertations on Deccani painting and that's your thing. And it goes without saying that admissions are competitive (especially top programs like Berkeley/NYU) so it doesn't hurt to diversify a bit. 

Edited July 8, 2015 by brown_eyed_girl

[rococo_realism]

Look at the PhD advisers listed here...

 

http://caareviews.org/dissertations/346/in_progress

Hey, thanks for that! I can use it to look at my areas.

[DHalbreich]

Shot in the dark here, but I'm applying this Fall and was wondering if anyone knew if Vidya Dehejia at Columbia is still taking students?