Tour Guides, Scholars & Lecturers

Jim Hagan has lived, studied, and traveled in South Asia for more than 25 years. He is an adjunct professor of Asian Studies at Castleton State College of Vermont. He has lectured in the U.S. and Europe on Buddhist art, architecture, meditation and philosophy. As a photographer, Jim's keen knowledge of the Himalayan region and cultures has served him well as a location scout for commercial film productions. He has trekked extensively throughout the Himalayas. Personable and witty, Jim's expertise has attracted travelers from around the world. Jim leads every tour the way he teaches — with passion and concern that each traveler has the experience of a lifetime!

Shelley Warren is an artist who has exhibited her large scale sculptures and installations in museums and galleries throughout the U.S. Prior to receiving her MFA Degree from Yale University School of Art, she lived and traveled extensively throughout Europe, Asia, and North Africa studying art.

In the ancient city kingdom of Patan, Nepal she studied with the Newars, renown for centuries throughout South Asia as the finest statue makers. Here she studied the lost wax process of bronze casting in a Newar foundry. In Kathmandu, Nepal she studied Tibetan Tangka painting as prescribed through ancient iconographical texts.

She has received numerous awards and fellowships from Yale University, New Jersey State Council of the Arts, Art Matters, Rutgers University Center for Innovative Printmaking, and Yaddo. Her work is in the Lannon Foundation Collection and has been reviewed by the New York Times.

Currently, she teaches drawing and sculpture at Castleton State College and the University of Vermont. As principal of Wisdom Tours, she has coordinated and led study abroad programs to Nepal and Greece since 1999.