My legs span the globe: one foot firmly rooted in America, my homeland, and the other planted just as deeply in South Asia
STEPHEN’S INDIA
My legs span the globe: one foot firmly rooted in America, my homeland, and the other planted just as deeply in South Asia. India has drawn me irresistibly for over fifty years. Welcomed by men, women, and children from every walk of life as an honored guest, I’ve melded into their culture, participated in their lives, been motivated by their stories, and, gaining their trust, benefited from their wisdom. I’ve lived in Indian homes in almost every region of the subcontinent, observing and documenting their art and creativity in photographs, films, books, and exhibitions, attempting to share with others the insights these many individuals have given me.
My life is about building bridges of communication and understanding between India and the rest of the world, hoping to dispel misconceptions and unjust criticisms and portray these diverse cultures as clearly and accurately as possible.
TIMELINE: 1951-PRESENT
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A deeply seminal experience
Met Helene Wheeler at a square dance in Jackson Hole, WY
Unique interdepartmental major in Indian studies.
Mentors Kamaladevi and Rukmini Devi important to Indian readers (photos). Began lifelong cross-cultural survey of Indian folk arts and crafts. Engaged to be married to Helene Wheeler (Hi).
Continuing survey of rural arts and crafts; Helene almost died of rare case of empyema – consequent lung surgery in Bombay.
Enrolled in London University’s School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in MPhil-PhD program in Indian art and archaeology.
Victoria and Albert Museum, London, as preparation for PhD on South Asian embroideries
Village India
(Harry N Abrams, NY)
Brooklyn Museum of Art as part of the Festival of India. Huyler assisted Curator Amy Poster in gathering material, providing photographic prints and objects from his own collection.
Mingei International Museum of Art, San Diego, as part of the Festival of India. Huyler co-curated the exhibition with Martha Longenecker and provided many of the displayed objects.
First of 17 professional tours of India, some for the Smithsonian, some privately, over the next 20 years.
The Ethics of Photographing Ethnic Cultures at the Maine Photographic Workshops (now Maine Media Workshops)
Co-curated exhibition at the Museum of International Folk Art, Santa Fe, and authored 2 chapters of the published catalog of the same title.
Preparing material and choosing sacred objects in preparation for display in my upcoming exhibition Puja: Expressions of Hindu Devotion
(Rizzoli, New York with co-editions in London, Paris, and Hamburg)
At the Smithsonian’s Arthur M Sackler Gallery as well as in other museums throughout the US and India
(Mapin Press & the Indira Gandhi Center for the Arts)
At the Smithsonian’s Arthur M Sackler Gallery. It was intended to be open for 6 months, but by popular demand was open for 4 years with 750,000 recorded visitors!
Touching Fire: Elements of Devotion in India at the Houston Museum of Natural Science
New Delhi, Chennai, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Bhubaneshwar, Vadodara, & Mumbai
At the American Museum of Natural History, New York, just 4 days before 9/11! In consequence, the entire planned trajectory of the show was changed, 7 future American venues cancelled.
At the Maine Center for Contemporary Art, Rockport, Maine.
650 items of Indian folk art and craft to Mingei International Museum, San Diego
(NY: Abbeville Press & Ahmedabad: Mapin Press)
Mingei International Museum, San Diego
Eye For India: Stephen Huyler’s Enthusiastic Journey of Discovery
From the Santa Fe Film Festival for Sonabai: Another Way of Seeing
Mingei International Museum, San Diego
A Question of Hue-as yet unpublished
Co-curated by Huyler at the Santa Barbara Museum of Art
Catalog published by University of California Press with chapter on Hinduism by Huyler.
A Life Transformed by India – As yet unpublished
SEE INDIA THROUGH STEPHEN’S EYES
