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Peter C. Keller, Ph.D. FN ‘84

As President of the Bowers Museum, Peter Keller is dedicated to celebrating world cultures through their arts. His entire career has been a combination of fieldwork and curation, for over a decade turned toward the goal of preserving the diverse, endangered cultures of the South Pacific.

The recently-opened, permanent exhibition titled Spirits and Headhunters: Art of the Pacific Islands is a testament to Dr. Keller’s passion on the subject. The 6000-square-foot exhibition is the culmination of twelve years of fieldwork and nine separate expeditions to New Guinea, one of the world’s most culturally diverse areas. When he began his work in 1998, Dr. Keller noted that over 700 languages were spoken in New Guinea, each representing “a great deal more than simply a means of communicating; they represent territory, a unique set of beliefs, and unique artistic style and yet most of these languages are spoken by less than 500 people.”
Peter Keller and his partner on many expeditions, Ed Roski, MN ‘90 are collaborating on a book to be published by the Bower Museum documenting their detailed findings and providing a cultural inventory of the region’s unique and irreplaceable heritage.

In addition to Spirits and Headhunters, Dr. Keller has brought over fifty, critically-acclaimed exhibitions including Secrets of the Silk Road (2010), Art of the Samurai (2009) and Terra Cotta Warriors: Guardians of China’s First Emperor (2008) to the Bowers Museum. He has forged major partnerships with some of the greatest museums in the world including the British Museum, the Palace Museums in Beijing and Taipai, and the Museo del Oro in Bogota.