# @rubinmuseum on Instagram

- **Type:** Image
- **Original URL:** https://www.instagram.com/p/DMiUOyDv5fH
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/32747826-rubinmuseum-instagram
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/postThumbnails/82c673e4be.jpg
- **Posted:** 2025-07-25T15:42:23.000+00:00
- **Account Owner:** Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art (@rubinmuseum) — https://gondola.cc/rubinmuseum

## Caption

What sparked a radical transformation, from international school teacher and gallerist to Tibetan Buddhist nun?

In "Sister Max: A Surprising Life Story," our latest article in #Spiral, Director of Siddartha Art Gallery Sangeeta Thapa, tells the story of how a black school teacher from the United States came to Nepal in the early 1960s, established a private art gallery, and helped found the Kopan Monastery, now a renowned center for Tibetan Buddhism. 

Max Matthews (b. 1933) was a Black American educator and cultural pioneer with a Master’s from Columbia University. Seeking freedom beyond the confines of 1950s America, her career with the U.S. Department of Defense took her to international schools in Athens, Berlin, Moscow, and Kathmandu. In Nepal, she opened an influential art gallery and immersed herself in the local creative scene. Later, she embraced Buddhism, moved to India, and helped found the now-renowned Kopan Monastery in Nepal.

"Max visited the lamas in a Gelukpa monastery in Boudha and had a profound epiphany. She realized a past life association with Buddhism may have catalyzed her journey to Nepal. Soon afterward, Max separated from her husband as the call to Buddhism was strong. Max shaved her long hair, took on robes, and was ordained a Buddhist nun," writes Sangeeta Thapa. "Though Max’s gallery lasted only four years, it played a vital role as a pioneering space that inspired many artists—including myself—decades later.” 

Read the full essay at the 🔗 in our bio!

Images: (1) Max Matthews; image courtesy of Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive. (2) Max Matthews alongside her 1932 Hudson convertible limousine, which she bought from her contact in the Royal Palace; image courtesy of Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive. (3) Sister Max (bottom row, second from left) in Buddhist robes with fellow monks; image courtesy of Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive. (4) Sister Max (right) and a friend, with Kathmandu in the background; image courtesy of Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive.

#RubinMuseum #RubinGlobal #SisterMax

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## Tags

rubinmuseum, rubinglobal, spiral, sistermax

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