Donald Stadtner
Donald M. Stadtner | |
|---|---|
| Born | c. 1947 (age 78–79) |
| Spouse | Kwanchai Channoo |
| Academic background | |
| Alma mater | University of California, Berkeley |
| Academic work | |
| Discipline | Art history, South Asian art, Buddhist studies |
| Institutions | University of Texas at Austin |
Notable works | Sacred Sites of Burma Ancient Pagan: Buddhist Plain of Merit |
Donald Martin Stadtner is an American art historian known for his publications on South and Southeast Asian art. After completing his Ph.D. in the 1970s, he became a professor at the University of Texas in Austin and made multiple trips to Asian countries including India, Myanmar, and Japan focused on their art history and religious iconography. His research has frequently discussed Buddhist imagery and temples throughout the region. He has organized several exhibits in United States museums and other functions to showcase pieces an photos of his research, along with published books and art catalogues on the subject.
Education and career
[edit]Stadtner completed his Ph.D. in art history from the University of California at Berkeley in 1976[1] with a thesis titled From Sirpur to Rājim: The Art of Kosala During the Seventh Century.[2] He went on to become an assistant professor at the University of Texas in Austin that same year[3] and later an associate professor.[1] The countries his research covered caused Stadtner to be referred to as an "Oriental art specialist" by the Abilene Reporter-News.[4] His early research was on the art of India, including temples and art connected to Buddhist traditions. In 1979, he went on a trip to India and Japan through a Fulbright Grant to continue his studies before returning to the University of Texas to teach in the 1980 fall term.[3][4] His time in India was spent in Varanasi to study medieval Indian art.[3] Stadtner was elected in 1982 to the art and archaeology committee for the American Institute of Indian Studies to help support the Center for Art and Archaeology.[3]
Throughout the early 1980s, he focused on art in Japan, particularly on the work of Hokusai. After finishing his study of the artist's portfolio, he returned to the United States to do a lecture and exhibition tour throughout Texas on Japanese art in 1985, funded by the University of New Mexico ad the Texas Arts Exchange.[1] The summer of 1985, after obtaining a Smithsonian Institution grant, he spent several weeks in India and Burma to begin an archaeological investigation of ancient Burmese religious temples for both Hinduism and Buddhism in the area around Rangoon.[5]
Collaborating with Sylvia Fraser-Lu in 2015, Stadtner organized an exhibit titled "Buddhist Art of Myanmar" at the Asia Society museum headquarters in New York City.[6] They worked with the curator, Adriana Proser, to showcase different aspects of the Buddha throughout many periods of Myanmar's history with collection pieces loaned from Myanmar museums and various US organizations.[7]
Publications
[edit]Stadtner has published several books and numerous articles in peer-reviewed journals and co-authored two museum catalogues.
- — (1971). A Gupta Lintel from Sārnāth: Masters Paper. University of Michigan Press.[8]
- — (1976). From Sirpur to Rājim: The Art of Kosala During the Seventh Century. University of California Press. p. 788.[2]
- —; Girard-Geslan, Maud; Klokke, Marijke J.; Le Bonheur, Albert; Zaleski, Valerie; Zephir, Thierry (1998). Art of Southeast Asia. Harry N. Abrams, Incorporated. p. 635. ISBN 9780810919952.[9]
- — (1999). The Art of Burma: New Studies. Marg Publications. p. 128. ISBN 9788185026442.[10]
- — (2005). Ancient Pagan: Buddhist Plain of Merit. River Books. p. 286. ISBN 9786167339320.[11][12]
- —; Pīammēttāwat, Phaisān (2011). Sacred Sites of Burma: Myth and Folklore in an Evolving Spiritual Realm. River Books. p. 348. ISBN 9789749863602.[13]
- —; Fraser-Lu, Sylvia (2015). Buddhist Art of Myanmar. Asia Society Museum. p. 256. ISBN 9780300209457.[14]
- —; Brown, Robert L.; Gude, Tushara Bindu; Gamage, Lakshika Senarath (2018). The Jeweled Isle: Art from Sri Lanka. Los Angeles County Museum of Art. p. 106. ISBN 9781943042128.[15][16]
- — (2026). Sacred Sites of Sri Lanka. River Books. p. 324. ISBN 9786164510227.[17]
Personal life
[edit]Stadtner lives in Walnut Creek, California.[18]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- 1 2 3 "Japanese artist topic at museum". Abilene Reporter-News. September 26, 1985. Retrieved July 14, 2026.
- 1 2 Stadtner, Donald M. (1981). "The Siddhesvara Temple at Palāri and the Art of Kosala during the Seventh and Eighth Centuries". Ars Orientalis. 12. Smithsonian Institution: 49–56. Retrieved July 25, 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 "Art Historian To Serve on Institute Committee". The Orange Leader. November 21, 1982. Retrieved July 14, 2026.
- 1 2 Smith, Debbie (April 24, 1979). "Western ideas mixed with tradition in Japan". Abilene Reporter-News. Retrieved July 14, 2026.
- ↑ "UT art historian to see India, Burma on archeological study". Austin American-Statesman. May 18, 1985. Retrieved July 21, 2026.
- ↑ Cotter, Holland (February 28, 2015). "Art of devotion, from Myanmar". The Charlotte Observer. Retrieved July 21, 2026.
- ↑ Lawrence, Lee (March 10, 2015). "Review of 'Buddhist Art of Myanmar' at the Asia Society Museum: Crash Course in Nirvana". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "A Gupta lintel from Sārnāth: Masters paper". openlibrary.org. Open Library. May 24, 2026. Retrieved July 25, 2026.
- ↑ Brunskill, Joan (August 16, 1998). "Armchair Art To Pore Over". North County Times. Retrieved July 23, 2026.
- ↑ Caswell, J. O. (October 2000). "The Art of Burma: New studies". Choice Reviews. Vol. 38, no. 2. p. 314. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ Brown, Robert L. (February 2008). "The Mists of Ramañña: The Legend That Was Lower Burma / Ancient Pagan: Buddhist Plain of Merit". The Journal of Asian Studies. 67 (1). Duke University Press: 340–344. doi:10.1017/S0021911808000521. Retrieved July 23, 2026.
- ↑ Gutman, Pamela (2006). "Donald M. Stadtner, Ancient Pagan: Buddhist Plain of Merit, photography by Michael Freeman and Donald M. Stadtner" (PDF). The Journal of the Siam Society. 94: 243–246. Retrieved July 25, 2026.
- ↑ Reviews for Sacred Sites of Burma:
- Shaw, Sarah (2012). "Sacred Sites of Burma: Myth and Folklore in an Evolving Spiritual Realm by Donald Stadtner". Buddhist Studies Review. 29 (2). UKABS: 304–307. doi:10.1558/bsrv.v29i2.304-307. Retrieved July 25, 2026.
- Moore, Elizabeth Howard (2011). "Reviews: Sacred Sites of Burma: Myth and Folklore in an Evolving Spiritual Realm" (PDF). The Journal of the Siam Society. 99: 334–337. Retrieved July 25, 2026.
- Pichard, Pierre (2011). "Donald M. Stadtner Photographs by Paisarn Piemmattawat and Donald M. Stadtner, Sacred Sites of Burma: Myth and Folklore in an Evolving Spiritual Realm, 2011". Aséanie. 27: 191–193. Retrieved July 25, 2026.
- ↑ Miksic, John N. (2016). "Buddhist Art of Myanmar edited by Sylvia Fraser-Lu and Donald M. Stadtner". The Journal of the Siam Society. 104: 327–329. Retrieved July 25, 2026.
- ↑ Lee, Sonya S. (June 11, 2019). "The Jeweled Isle: Art from Sri Lanka". College Art Association. doi:10.3202/caa.reviews.2019.60. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ Nichols, Chris (December 24, 2018). "The Best Books About L.A. of 2018". Los Angeles. Retrieved July 25, 2026.
- ↑ Devapriya, Uditha (November 2, 2025). "Donald Stadtner's Sacred Sites of Sri Lanka". The Island. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ Stadtner, Donald M. (2021). "The Hindu Sage Kapila, the Liberation of Bodh Gaya and Burma on the Eve of the Modern Era". The Journal of the Siam Society. 109 (2): 103–130. Retrieved July 25, 2026.