Tangka art: treasure of Tibet

Clusters of white clouds drifting across the blue sky, paths winding through snowy mountains, and Buddhist temples looming in infused incense--these are the images most people have of Tibet, the land of eternal mystery. And when it comes to the art treasures of the region, no image is more intrinsically associated with Tibet than the iconic Tangkas.

"Thangka," also known as "Tangka", "Thanka" or "Tanka", is a painted or embroidered Buddhist banner which was hung in a monastery or a family altar and occasionally carried by monks in ceremonial processions. In Tibetan, the word “thang” means flat, and thus the Thangka is a kind of painting done on flat surface but which can be rolled up when not required for display, sometimes called a scroll-painting.

Originating from the principal artistic schools of Western India (7th and 8th centuries), from which Tibetan painting takes its cue, thangka consists of a picture panel which is painted or embroidered, a textile mounting; and one or more of the following: a silk cover, leather corners, wooden dowels at the top and bottom and metal or wooden decorative knobs on the bottom dowel.

How to paint a Tangka?

The pictorial subjects of thangkas include portraits of Buddha’s, stories from the lives of saints and great masters. Thangkas are usually rectangular in shape, and the square ones are reserved for Mandalay. Thangka paintings vary in size, ranging from a little over a few square centimeters to several square meters.

Every part of Thangkas’ making process is done by hand. Sometimes the artist will spend three hours painting a small flower. A large thangka often takes large team of artists months, even years, to make. The material used for thangkas is linen cloth or cotton fabric; silk cloth is reserved for important subjects. Before painting begins, the material is stitched along the edges with flax thread and stretched on a specially made wooden frame. Then a paste made of animal glue mixed with talcum powder is spread over its surface to block up the holes in it. When the paste is scraped off and the cloth gets thoroughly dried, the material is ready for painting. To begin, the artist works out the sketches of the images with charcoal sticks. The drawing usually begins with the figure in the centre and then goes to the surrounding deities or landscape then coloring comes last.

The pigments used come from non-transparent minerals and plants such as malachite and cinnabar. They are mixed with animal glue and ox bile to make the luster stay. When the painting is done, it is mounted on a brocaded silk border. Important thangkas are embroidered on transferred outlines; some of them use a great variety of stitch patterns such as flat and piled stitches to give them a three-dimensional effect.

Intent & in Tents

As mysterious as Shangri-la, thangkas fascinate people from all over the world. However, what is the purpose of a thangka, what use was it originally intended for?

Firstly, a thangka painting is not simply a decoration or a creation of beauty, but a religious object and a medium for expressing Buddhist ideals. These works of art function as models on which the practitioner can reflect and meditate. By meditating on such objects, one can train the mind and gain an understanding of certain types of awareness that specific image portrays. Other reasons for commissioning a thangka painting may be to bring about good health, prosperity or long life.