Two Exceptional Tibetan Thangkas
Today's sale is led by two 16th-century paintings from the famed Ngor Monastery, part of the most significant series of thangka paintings in Central Tibet.
Because of Sachen Kunga Nyingpo’s legacy and significance, the current portrait (shown first) is perhaps the finest and certainly the most elaborate and highly embellished thangka in the larger extant Lamdre set from Ngor Monastery illustrating the lineage of Sakya hierarchs. Rich with symbolism, the individual iconographic elements of this portrait demarcate Sachen’s eminent status as the one of the progenitors of the Sakya Lamdre.
Highly detailed and sensitively rendered, the portrait of Mahasiddha Avadhutipa (shown second) is an exceptional example of the tradition of “caricature art” in Sakya painting. Note the playful and serene expression of Avadhutipa. After his renunciation and subsequent realization, the gentle Avadhutipa could often be found playing with children in the streets of his former kingdom.
Indian & Southeast Asian Works of Art
New York | 20 March
