phayul.com, June 20, 2005
The Art and Politics of Tibet
Lecture by Kasur Tenzin N. Tethong at the Asian Art Museum
San Francisco, June 2, 2005

Good evening. I want to begin by thanking the Society for Asian Art for inviting me to say a few words this evening, and the Asian Art Museum for hosting us. Although I am not an expert on the subject I have boldly accepted this honor and will attempt to say a few words about Tibetan Art, and the politics of Tibetan Art today. My comments are going to be fairly brief, and hope there will be plenty of time of Q & As.

As you know, this talk has been arranged to coincide with "Tibet: Treasures from the Roof of the World" currently or soon to be on display at this museum, one of four American institutions that negotiated with Chinese authorities to bring you this collection of Tibetan art and artifacts from the Potala and the Norbulingkha palaces in Lhasa, Tibet.

The Politics of this Exhibition

This exhibition has already made its rounds in Santa Ana, Houston, and New York City, and has been warmly received and viewed by thousands, but not without some controversy. It is true that putting together such an exhibition is no easy task, and despite the best intentions and careful work done by a wonderful team of curators and experts, the politics of such a show and the sensitivities of the Tibetans and friends of Tibet have naturally surfaced.

When the exhibition first opened at the Bowers Museum in southern California there seemed to be no looming controversy because all the difficult logistical and political work had been thoroughly done to the satisfaction of both the Chinese and museum officials. Even the prospects of any negative reaction from local Tibetans, including those of the Tibet support world, seemed to have been thwarted by a letter which the museum managed to get from His Holiness the Dalai Lama lauding the educational and cultural value of the exhibition.

But as soon as the exhibition opened there was a small flood of complaints; firstly, the letter from His Holiness the Dalai Lama was no where to be seen, and soon the monks preparing the sand Mandala were reportedly asked not to display a photograph of the Dalai Lama on site. More questions followed, and soon actual demonstrations were taking place outside the museum. Strong opinions were expressed by many Tibetans and Tibet supporters, and many questions raised about these late developments. It became quite confusing. On the one hand the museum had sought His Holiness' endorsement and support in a very open way, and also worked closely with several Tibetans leading up to the opening, but when it appeared that their usefulness had ended, the museum seemed to have gone out simply to please the Chinese.

Similarly, in New York, there were protests by Students for a Free Tibet and other groups. While there was no outright condemnation of the exhibition or of the host museum, the protesters tried to point out that the art on display was "stolen art" and attempted to draw attention to issues beyond the exhibition. Among strong views expressed in New York, one rather extreme voice compared the exhibition to "Nazi stolen art".

Here in San Francisco several Tibet groups have been faced with the same situation and are attempting to respond in different ways, questioning the very nature of such cultural displays and trying to direct public attention to the overall situation in Tibet.

The Asian Art Museum on the other hand has been quite open about the purpose of the exhibition and has attempted to be sensitive to the concerns of the community, inviting representatives to discuss the exhibition and even offering alternate space and forums for different voices to be heard.

However, if any one of us is put on the spot and asked to give a heartfelt reaction to the exhibition and the larger issues around it, it is not going to be easy. How does one react to the politics of such an exhibition, and how can one adequately respond in a responsible and meaningful way?

It is a challenge before each one of us. We can't quite ignore or whitewash the fact the exhibition has been organized primarily under the aegis of the Chinese government. Yet we know of the excellent input and work of Tibetan experts and scholars whose contributions are significant to understanding Tibet and Tibetan Art. And we cannot but agree with His Holiness the Dalai Lama's endorsement of the exhibition and its educational and cultural value. And we can't also condemn the museums for working with the Chinese when their task is but to teach and inspire us with exhibitions of such nature.

But speaking simply as a Tibetan, I can certainly give you my thoughts and feelings about it. Because of the devastating impact of the Chinese invasion and occupation of my country, and the destruction that followed, everything we held precious was lost; our homes, our families, our temples and monasteries, and our communities. What remains with us today are only memories. An exhibition such as the one downstairs is part of that memory which we hold dear. And, because the situation in Tibet still remains unresolved and unsatisfactory, decades later, we are naturally sensitive to anything that has to do with Tibet, especially if it does not seem to speak the complete truth.

If we are to argue the politics and history of Tibet, or human rights and political freedoms, I suppose it would be easier to speak in black and white terms. But when it comes to art and culture, especially in the context of an exhibition such as the one below, one cannot be sure where the line between education and propaganda rests, or where art and politics intersect.

I am sure there are some who will question whether the Tibetans have any reasonable justification to protest such exhibitions, and ask if it is even fair to demand of such sensitivity and accommodation when an exhibition like this is primarily for the benefit of the larger public.

The Art of Tibet

Tibetan Art, as we know it, is basically Tibetan Buddhist Art. Except for a small segment of art work and artifacts which can be considered secular, the main body of Tibetan artistic expression in its various forms is Buddhism and its ideas. It ranges from visual images of inspiration, education, and meditation, to abstract and exaggerated representations of the mind up to its ultimate enlightened state.

While Tibetan artistic expressions precede the introduction of Buddhism, the predominant influence in Tibetan Art has been that of Indian Buddhist art, followed by influences from Kashmir and Central Asia during their Buddhist periods, and the later influences of Chinese Art, especially during the Yuan and Ching dynasties when there was active exchanges of all kinds between the Tibetans and the Chinese. But despite these two major influences from the East and the South, Tibetan art is said to have come into its own distinct and powerful form in the same manner in which Tibetan Buddhism evolved; with considerable effort and dedication on the part of Tibetans, and new experiences insights.

To try and explain all of this is no easy task, and also seems unnecessary in the context of this exhibition since it has been very ably done by a host of scholars and experts, Patricia Berger of UC Berkeley, Tibetan Buddhist scholar Robert Clark and Terese Barthlomew of the Asian Art Museum, who have written the accompanying catalogue to this exhibition. And it is not the first time for this museum which brought us "Wisdom and Compassion" with Tibet House many years ago accompanied by yet another wonderful catalogue written by Robert Thurman of Columbia University and Marilyn Rhie an art historian.

Tibetan Buddhist Art is not simply art from the high plateau of Tibet, a geographically or environmentally defined art form, nor a tradition purely aesthetic, or art that seeks to understand the conventional human experience. Tibetan Buddhist Art is Art with a serious attitude, if I might say; art that can transport you to levels of visualization and realizations far beyond the realms of ordinary senses and ordinary states of the mind. Of course it touches us with it's beauty and its power, and inspires us too, but it goes even further. Tibetan Buddhist Art attempts to reveal to us the true state of our existence - of suffering and impermanence - and points us to the ultimate enlightened mind. It is art in search of truth, in search of the ultimate reality of nature, and the ultimate potential in each one of us. One could say it is Art in it's highest form.

Tibetan Art was also produced with a pure intent for the benefit of others. It was not compromised and it was never done for fame or profit. Even the very best artists never signed their work and never put a price on their work. They produced their work only at the request of lamas and practitioners, monasteries and temples, never for someone who offered more money, and never for the market. You had to request and plead with the artist, often wait for months and years before the artist could fulfill your request.

With no profit of any kind made between the artist and the final recipient of the finished work, the original intention of the art was kept pure and intact.

Ownership

In addition to our sensitivities based on recent history, it is also our sense of the history of our art, and our knowledge of the dedication of the artists through the generations, and of the great reverence for the finished works that gives us this strong feeling of propriety and ownership over this tradition, especially when it is so publicly displayed. And, in the changed circumstances of the political situation today, we feel especially affronted when our art no longer seems to be ours, when its high purpose is lowered to political agenda, and when its distinct identity is deliberately compromised.

Speaking of ownership, the art on display below actually has a owner whose permission I am certain the Chinese officials did not seek when they negotiated this exhibition. Since almost all the artifacts come from the Norbulinkha and the Potala, the summer and winter palaces of the Dalai Lamas, they rightfully belong to the current 14th Dalai Lama, a person who, as you know, is alive and well, and living in Dharmsala, India. Although a monk, one who has forsaken ownership of material possessions let alone art treasures, I don't believe he has formally renounced ownership or willed them to the Chinese government. In this sense, one can rightfully call the exhibition "stolen art" because it has been taken from someone without his consent.

Revival

Such is the politics of this art. And if we look back at the last fifty years, there is enough reason to despair. Between 1959 and 1979, when first phase of Chinese rule and the turmoil of the Cultural Revolution subsided, only a handful of monasteries and temples stood standing, from among 6,500 before the Dalai Lama left Tibet. It is fortunate that Potala and the Norbulinkha were largely spared when even the most holy of Tibetan temples, the Jokhang, was a pig sty and a fierce battleground during the Cultural Revolution squabbles.

But in all this despair there is hope. In recent years official Chinese control over Tibetan life has relaxed slightly, especially if it does not seem to have an explicit political message. Once again, taking advantage of this limited freedom, Tibetans have embarked on a burst of artistic activity, a rebuilding frenzy of temples and monasteries, a revival of religious festivals, and the reproduction of Tibetan Buddhist art in all its forms. And while the actual number of monks and nuns are controlled and religious learning under strict control of local Communist party officials, they have not yet realized the subversive nature of art.

In exile, however, the preservation of Tibetan art continued unabated, and every Tibetan home is adorned with sacred Buddhist art, and all the monasteries and temples, easily numbering in the many hundreds, are also aglow with fine new Buddhist art. More recently, it has come into contact with a much larger international Buddhist community which range from Buddhist enclaves in the Himalayas to Buddhist centers throughout the Western world, including many Asian Buddhist countries, especially Chinese Buddhist communities throughout the world.

New Art

As Tibetan Buddhist art continues to thrive once again, in exile and back in the Tibetan homeland, it will continue to be enveloped in the politics of what it happening in Tibet. Some of you, who are interested primarily in the art, might consider these political intrusions a nuisance, but these realities are unavoidable. In fact, the are new voices on the horizon that will further the discussion about art and politics.

One new voice on the horizon is that of a new art that is being produced by a new generation of Tibetans no longer tied to traditional roots. They do not necessarily aspire to the lofty goals of Buddhist enlightenment and liberation but speak to us of our real life experiences and of individual hopes and aspirations. This new art is trying to give shape to our mangled identity and trying to place our experiences in the larger context of the changing world. It is trying to stake a claim, equal to the Chinese and everyone else, of our place in the sun; not only linking our past to the present but also of ourselves to the rest of humanity.

This new art comes from across the Tibetan plateau, from Amdo to Lhasa, from across the Himalayas, from Dharmsala and Kathmandu, all the way to New York and San Francisco, the 60's pot-trail in reverse, some might say. It is exciting new art because it is vibrant, and it may be significant too, because it does not seem to be drive by popular tastes or just the market, as yet. I hope that some of this new art will come to the Bay Area in the near future.

In conclusion, I suppose I could declare that the state of Tibetan Art is alive and well; traditional Tibetan Buddhist Art firmly anchored once gain at its roots and in its homeland and in the Diaspora, and the new emerging art blessed with limitless potential in the global village. Both the Art and Politics of Tibet are alive and kicking, faced with an uncertain future, but with much to hope for. Thank you.

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with kind regards,

Matthias Arnold
(Art-Eastasia list)

http://www.chinaresource.org
http://www.fluktor.de

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