Traveling Thangka Painters

Anthropological and Historical Approach towards the Multi-traveling Experiences of Tibetan Artists

Abstract

Tibetan thangka is a genre of religious art, mostly paintings, created in the Tibetan Cultural Region since the 12th century. Notwithstanding thangka-making is considered as a sedentary occupation, the itinerant aspect in painters’ life is hard to disregard. Most painters travel for economic purposes, opportunities to learn different artistic styles and accumulation of religious merits. Their diverse traveling experiences will be the focus of this article. First, I examine the thangka-making practices in two historical centers—Rebgong and Lhasa. I outline the process of commercialization of Thangka Art within the larger narrative of Tibetan modernization. Second, by analyzing the journeys of two artists—a Sichuan-born Tibetan thangka painter traveling in West China, and a Shikatse-born Tibetan thangka painter traveling the global art world—I illustrate how the modern itinerary is relevant to the historical and institutional background. Additionally, forays into the contemporary art world, can themselves be construed as journeys.