Land of Snow: Buddhist art of the Himalayas

Dhr. Seven and CC Liu, Wisdom Quarterly; Norton Simon Museum of Art

The world-famous Norton Simon Museum of [Buddhist] Art, Pasadena, California

The road to the top of the world, be it K2 or Everest, is the path-of-practice (RTI/WQ)

   

In the Land of Snow: Buddhist Art of the Himalayas

Buddhist Goddess, 1450 Nepal (NS)

This is the Norton Simon's first large-scale exhibition of Himalayan Buddhist art.

It will bring together exceptional Indian [Ladakhi, Sikkim, HP], Nepalese, and Tibetan Buddhist sculptures along with significant thangka (wall hanging "flat field") paintings from throughout the Himalayan region from the Museum's permanent collection and generous loans.

Himalayas (MickeySuman/flickr)

One monumental thangka, which measures over 20 feet in height, depicts the "Buddha of the Future," Maitreya, flanked by the 8th [NOTE: We are currently at the 14th] Dalai Lama, Jamphel Gyatso, and his tutor, Yongtsin Yeshe Gyaltsen. This is only the second time this extraordinary painting has been on view at the Museum.

The exhibit runs from March 28-August 25, 2014, but three related events begin tomorrow (see below).

Himalayan Maitreya, the Buddha-to-come, Diskit, Ladakh, India (PaPa_KiLo/flickr.com)

 
1. MANDALA MAKING (Family Art Night)

Bhavacakra (thangka-mandala)

Date: Friday, April 11, 2014, 6:30 pm-7:30 pm

Mandalas are cosmic diagrams that help us understand how the universe is organized. Create a mandala of your world with yourself at the center, surrounded by the people and things that are important to you. Meets in Entrance Gallery (FREE with admission), designed for families with children ages 4–10. No reservations needed

• 2. TOUR: Buddhist Art of the Himalayas
• Date: Saturday, April 12, 2014, 1:00 pm-2:00 pm
  

Maitreya thangka, Tibet 1793 (NS)

Join a Norton Simon Museum educator for a one-hour tour of the exhibition "In the Land of Snow: Buddhist Art of the Himalayas." Meets in Entrance Gallery (FREE with admission). 

3. LECTURE: Enter the Mandala: Cosmic Centers and Mental Maps in Himalayan Buddhism, Saturday, April 19, 2014
Jeff Durham (Asian Art Museum of San Francisco) Mandalas are geometric maps of Vajrayana Buddhist visionary worlds. Appearing in both painting and sculpture, mandalas typically consist of nested squares and circles. These geometric forms define the center of the cosmos... 3:00-5:00 pm