A collection of Buddhist and Hindu art from Tibet, Nepal, Indonesia and India will on sale this weekend. Part of the proceeds will go to the Arizona Friends of Tibet, which is sponsoring the event.
The sale will be held at The Pavilion, 3705 N. Old Sabino Canyon Road, beginning with a reception from 4 to 8 p.m. Friday and continuing through Sunday.
All the art pieces are from the collection of the late Bobette Adler Levy. Foothills resident Sydney J. Levy 85, organized the event in honor of Bobette, his wife of 52 years, who died Dec. 24, 2005.
"Bobette was an extraordinary woman," Levy said. "She was a recognized collector. More than 400 beautiful sacred-art pieces are catalogued and photographed."
Levy said his late wife bought the treasures when they traveled extensively throughout the world.
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Oro Valley resident Erik Shapiro, 50, a longtime friend of the Levys, traveled with Bobette to Tibet. He became very interested in her vast collection and enjoyed spending time with her.
"Bobette was scholarly, knowledgeable and passionate about each piece," Shapiro said. "Several pieces in her collection are unique and one of a kind."
A quarter of the collection is made up of the deity known as Ganesha. Ganesha is the Hindu god of success and destroyer of evil and obstacles.
"We have more than 100 figures of the elephant-headed deity in different stages of life," Shapiro said.
The collection also includes scroll paintings, he said.
Levy said his wife would want to share her beloved pieces with others who have a common interest in Buddhist and Hindu art. The prices range from $50 to several thousand dollars. Ten percent of the proceeds will go to the Arizona Friends of Tibet.
Levy is working with the organization to display the collection. Because mid-February is the Tibetan New Year, he thought it would be a perfect time to present the collection.
"Erik wrote a proposal to the organization and it was accepted," Levy said.
Bobette and Sydney Levy lived in Evanston, Ill., for many years and raised two children.
Bobette Levy attended Smith College and the University of Chicago, and was a psychotherapist.
Her collections extended beyond sacred art.
"She was a gifted collector of Navajo Indian silver jewelry," Levy said. "For years she collected and fostered the work of ceramic and art-glass artists as well as her sacred-art collection."
For 37 years Levy served as a marketing professor at Northwestern University's Kellogg Graduate School of Management. He retired as emeritus professor of marketing, and he and Bobette moved to Tucson in 1991. Levy is currently a distinguished professor at the University of Arizona.
"This event is not only to sell the art, but to honor Bobette and these marvelous treasures," Shapiro said. "Bobette would have desired her precious pieces to be reincarnated into someone else's treasures."
This event is not only to sell the art, but to honor Bobette and these marvelous treasures. Bobette would have desired her precious pieces to be reincarnated into someone else's treasures.
Erik Shapiro
