Catherine Maudsley has contributed to the community by sharing her expertise with many non-profit organizations since the 1970s.
She has served on the Executive Committee of The University of Hong Kong Museum Society, a non-profit organization who provides support to the University of Hong Kong Museum and Art Gallery (UMAG), playing a vital force in the promotion of art and culture in the Hong Kong community. Catherine has also served on the Executive Committee of The Oriental Ceramic Society, Hong Kong which is dedicated to the open exchange of ideas and information between scholars, collectors and enthusiasts through lectures, guided exhibition viewings, exclusive collection visits, study tours, and masterclasses.
At the Hong Kong Art School, whose degree-granting curriculum focuses mainly on various disciplines of Fine Art, including ceramics, painting, photography and sculpture, she served on the Academic Committee. Catherine also served on the selection panel for the Design Trust/Royal College of Art Fellowship in Design Curation. The Royal College of Art (RCA), based in London, United Kingdom, is the world’s leading art and design university, whose postgraduate programmes develop the next generation of artists, designers, researchers, creators, and innovators.
Upon her return to Canada in 2021, Catherine has continued to contribute to the community. As a volunteer, she created and taught a Buddhist Art and Culture course for the Toronto Centre for Applied Buddhism and contributes to the Buddhism in Prisons Canada newsletter. She currently serves on the Scholarships and Awards for Women Committee of Zonta Club of Hamilton 1. Zonta is dedicated to achieving gender equality in education and encourages women and girls pursuing education and careers in traditionally male-dominated fields. It supports scholarships, fellowships and awards in leadership positions, in business, and in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).
Catherine Maudsley is a highly regarded scholar, curator, and speaker. Since meeting her over 20 years ago, I have been impressed time and again with how wide-ranging and deep her knowledge, interest and expertise in Chinese art is. While there are many accomplishments that I could draw attention to, it is her commitment to sharing her knowledge with as wide a public as possible that stands out. For some years Catherine served on the Executive Committee of the Oriental Ceramic Society of Hong Kong but her contributions to the OCS run much deeper. In addition to editing the Society’s 1999 exhibition catalogue, Passion of Collecting, and its 2006 exhibition catalogue Art & Imitation in China, Catherine is able to make even quite complex concepts and ideas engaging and accessible to the broader public. Over the years, she has been generous with her time and expertise in delivering lectures, as well as guiding in-depth study tours to exhibitions, in subjects as diverse as Tibetan Buddhism, the legacies of female collectors, and Chinese painting. I have no hesitation in sharing that her passion for, expertise in, and ability to communicate about Asian art is unparalleled.