The Art Students League was founded in 1875 in reaction to the National Academy of Design’s plan to remove life drawing from the curriculum. It grew rapidly in its first year, helmed by Lemuel E. Wilmarth as its first president. The League was funded purely by membership fees, allowing the institution a degree of independence.

Ted Muehling graduated with a degree in industrial design from Pratt Institute, where he was mentored by Gerald Gulotta (who had been a finalist in the international competition for flatware and whose submission was exhibited in the associated Designed for Silver exhibition in 1960). Muehling, neverthless, found his métier in jewelry design, although he did acknowledge Gulotta's influence on his work.

Following the fall of the Mon-Dvaravati kingdom in the 11th century, Khmer rule extended into Thailand and remained dominant into the 13th century. The central Thai city of Lopburi, which gives its name to the period style of this large-scale Buddha, was both the political and artistic center of the region.

The beliefs and ways of life in South Asia significantly influenced the states and kingdoms of Southeast Asia, which adopted many Indian customs and adapted Indian styles of sculpture and architecture, as well as literature, dance, religious rituals, and court ceremonies to their native beliefs.