Pamela Gutman | |
|---|---|
| Born | Pamela Christine Munson 19 September 1944 (1944-09-19) Adelaide, Australia |
| Died | 31 March 2015 (2015-04-01) (aged 70) |
| Occupations |
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| Spouse | Gerry Gutman |
| Academic background | |
| Alma mater | University of Vienna Australian National University |
| Thesis | Ancient Arakan: with special reference to its cultural history between the fifth and 11th centuries (1977) |
| Influences | Gordon Luce |
| Academic work | |
| Discipline | Burmese art andBurmese history |
| Notable works | Burma’s Lost Kingdoms- Splendours of Arakan |
Pamela Gutman (1944 – 31 March 2015) was an Australian researcher,art historian, andcivil servant.[1] Specialised in ancient Burmese art, she was considered an authority in the domain.[2][3][1]
Gutman was born Pamela Christine Munson inAdelaide,Australia on 19 September 1944, the eldest of three daughters to Helmut Mundstein (later Munson), an architect and quantity surveyor, and Olga Mundstein (née Watmuff), a bookkeeper.[4][1] In 1955, the family moved to Melbourne, where she studied at theStrathcona Baptist Girls Grammar School.[1]
She completed her tertiary education at theUniversity of Vienna, focusing on German, philosophy, and art history.[4] She married Gerry Gutman, a public servant and economist, in 1968.[1]
She pursued a doctorate at theAustralian National University, becoming the first Australian scholar to complete a doctorate inAsian art.[4][5][6] In 1972, she began field research inBurma (now Myanmar) for her PhD thesis,Ancient Arakan, with Special Reference to Its Cultural History, 5th to 12th Centuries, completed in 1977.[3]
Gutman entered public and university service after completing her education, working for the AustralianDepartment of Immigration and theDepartment of the Prime Minister and Cabinet.[6] From 1997 to 2004, she served as a member of theRefugee Review Tribunal.[6]
In 2001, she publishedBurma’s Lost Kingdoms: Splendours of Arakan, which is now a key reference for scholars ofRakhine State.[7][4][2]
Throughout her career, she advised many galleries, including theNational Gallery of Australia,Art Gallery of New South Wales,Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg, andAsia Society in New York.[2]
Gutman died on 31 March 2015 from cancer.[5] She was survived by her daughter, three grandchildren, and two sisters.[7] At the time of her death, she had not yet completed a planned second edition ofBurma’s Lost Kingdoms: Splendours of Arakan, and a biography ofGordon Luce, a British scholar of Burmese history.[7]
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