Acknowledgments

There are many people whom I would like to thank, beginning with Donald Rubin, who first conceived the idea of a Jain exhibition and whose encouragement and support have been a constant inspiration to me. The early and generous contribution to the project from the family of Sital and Suman Jain ensured that it could go forward and include a publication with contributions from some of the world’s best scholars in the field. I want to thank the outstanding staff at the museum, in particular, Martin Brauen, Chief Curator; Helen Abbott, Publisher; Becky Bloom, Assistant Curator; and John Monaco, Exhibitions Preparator. Many others at the museum and Rubin resources made contributions large and small, and they include: Vincent Baker, Kavie Barnes, Michelle Bennett, Louise Brooks, Amy Bzdak, Helen Chen, Marilena Christodoulou, Dudu Etzion, Alisha Ferrin, Deborah Fisher, Tracey Friedman, Alex Gardner, Cate Griffin, Sophie Hawkins, Jenny Hung, Asha Kaufman and all of the Guides and Docents, Jonathan Kuhr, Neil Liebman, Melissa Mates, Eline Maxwell, Tim McHenry, Shane Murray, Anne-Marie Nolin, Aoife Pacheco, Bruce Payne, Andrea Pemberton, Christine Pigott, Alanna Schindewolf, Brian Schneider, Patrick Sears, Marcos Stafne, Taline Toutounjian, Katherine Eirene Ulrich, and Rachel Perera Weingeist.

Of course, the exhibition and the catalog would have been impossible without the generosity and cooperation of the lenders of objects and images. They are listed separately; however, I must note Dr. Siddharth Bhansali, whom I would like to thank not only for his generosity in lending many pieces to this exhibition but also for sharing his knowledge of Jain art with me. Many of the suggestions that he made helped shape my vision for this exhibition.

John Cort and Paul Dundas, who also wrote essays for the volume, were heroic in their readiness to answer my questions, and I have benefited tremendously from their vast knowledge of Jainism. Sonya Quintanilla generously shared with me her expertise and insights from her experience as a curator. Suman Jain became a friend, who shared with me her personal thoughts on Jainism. Robert Del Bontà, Julia Hegewald, Padmanabh Jaini, and Kim Plofker also contributed their considerable scholarship to the catalog. John Eskenazi offered his advice and support. Finally, I owe an immeasurable debt of gratitude to John Rosenfield, who, I am sure, never imagined that I would still be coming to learn from him some forty years after I first became his student. For his generosity, his knowledge, his guidance, I will be forever grateful.