In auction houses, the Tangkas of renowned artists, such as Tseten Namgyal, will often sell for tens of thousands of dollars. Common Tangkas are also very popular among tourists. In Xianhu Tangka Circle, the largest Tangka base in Tibet, works of contemporary artists sell very well. A Japanese businessman once ordered a Tangka by Tengga, a young Tibetan Tangka painter in Xianhu, paying almost $20,000 for the piece.

With the development of a new generation of Tangka artists, the content of Tangka artworks has been enriched. Bodhisattvas are no longer the only theme. In recent Tangka paintings, there are various images of contemporary life, such as trains traveling through Tibet, coca-cola tins and even lamas holding telescopes.

Passing on the Skill

The passing on of Tangka painting skills has developed well in Tibet. The unique art form has been succeeded by generations of artists and reached new heights, with a stream of emerging excellent works.

At Tibet University, the Department of Art has a major in Tibetan painting. The prestigious university also has a strong teaching staff, who have innovated Tangka painting skills and styles and trained and cultivated a large number of Tangka painters or specialists.

Tseten Namgyal, born in 1960, is one of those dedicated to continuing the splendid Tibetan art form. Following tradition, teachers of Tangka art will instruct students for free. Namgyal is no exception. He has formally accepted more than 10 apprentices, laying a solid foundation for the development of this ancient art form. Adding an international twist, some of his students are from the United States and Japan.

Attracted to painting when he was a child, Namgyal learnt Tangka painting at the age of 19, as a student of a famous Tangka painter in Tibet. He soon made a name for himself in the field and in 1992 and 1994, he was invited to paint Tangkas for monasteries in Nepal.

In 1996, he opened the first Tangka store in the well-known Bakor Street, an old and traditional shopping street in the center of Lhasa, the Tibetan capital, frequented by tourists. While selling his paintings, Namgyal also teaches students in his shop. To date, his store has sold more than 1,000 Tangkas, some of which are his own works and those of his students.

Namgyal said that the money they have earned from sales of Tangkas cannot be abused, and must be used to help others. "Although there is no explicit regulations, we take it upon ourselves to do so," he said.

The master painter once helped to pay the tuition for a poor student in his hometown who had been admitted by a university but was hesitating to go because of financial difficulties. Namgyal has also promised that he will support all the poor students in college if they are recruited by universities.

He recently bought a 10,000-square-meter land on which he plans to build a Tangka painting school, scheduled to have both Chinese and English classes, so as to offer free learning of Tangka painting skills to more students.

With the handing down of Tangka painting skills, this art form will continue to paint both the old and new spirit of Tibet for many years to come.