Phoenix Art Museum has received a $5 million gift from philanthropist Sukumar Nagendran to build new galleries dedicated to Sri Lankan and South Asian art, according to The Art Newspaper. The donation will fund acquisitions, scholarly research and public programming centered on the region, and a new gallery honoring Nagendran will open in November.
What the gift will fund
The money will expand the museum’s Art of Asia galleries from roughly 6,000 square feet to 10,000 square feet through the renovation of existing space, The Art Newspaper reported. Part of that expansion includes a new 2,000-square-foot Nagendran Gallery for the Art of Sri Lanka and South Asia, named for the donor to recognize his long relationship with the museum.
Beyond construction, the gift will also support acquisitions, scholarly research and public programs tied to Sri Lankan art, according to the outlet. The museum already holds more than 21,000 works, with over 4,000 historic and contemporary pieces from artists who live, work in or come from Asia, making it one of the leading U.S. institutions for Asian art.
What it means for the museum and Phoenix
Jeremy Mikolajczak, the museum’s director, told The Art Newspaper the gift reflects the city’s shifting cultural landscape. “As one of the fastest-growing and most internationally connected cities in the US, Phoenix and its cultural identity are being redefined by its expanding Asian and Asian American communities,” Mikolajczak said. “The Nagendran gift marks a critical benchmark for Phoenix’s ascendant cultural capital, as the city emerges as a key centre of scholarship, artistic exchange and cultural stewardship outside the longstanding art capitals of New York and Los Angeles.”
Nagendran said he hopes the gift deepens cultural understanding of the region, inspires future generations and helps preserve and elevate Sri Lankan art, according to The Art Newspaper.
Background and context
Nagendran was introduced to Phoenix Art Museum a decade ago by philanthropists Coleene and Barry Fernando, who have played a major role in building the museum’s South Asian art holdings. The Fernandos have donated more than 130 works along with a collection of related photographs and provided significant loans, The Art Newspaper reported. Their support helped the museum stage major exhibitions including “The Guardian of the Flame: Art of Sri Lanka” in 2003 and “Legacy of Ceylon: Art and Photography of Sri Lanka” in 2021.
Phoenix Art Museum opens Nagendran Gallery in November
In November, the museum will inaugurate the Nagendran Gallery with the exhibition “Pala Pothupitiye: Mapping a Sri Lankan Consciousness,” curated by Tushara Bindu Gude, according to The Art Newspaper. Pothupitiye is a Sri Lankan artist whose work examines boundaries between distinct social classes, the sacred and everyday life, and traditional techniques alongside modern creative expression. His art also confronts the lasting impact of colonial rule by Portugal, the Netherlands and Britain in Sri Lanka between the 16th and mid-20th centuries.
Reporting from Theartnewspaper contributed to this story.
