Ngawang Drapa: the Painter with a Purpose

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On the eastern edge of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau， three great rivers running parallel to one another， the Jinsha， Langcang， and Nu rush thunderously through the fragmented cracks of the Hengduan Mountains straddling Sichuan， Yunnan， and Tibet. These are the “Three Parallel Rivers”， forming one of the most magnifi cent sights of our planet.

This area， with unique natural environment and culture， is known as “Khampa”. The natives here are renowned for their valiance and business know-how. The undulating mountains are dotted by splendid monasteries and ancient sacred remains. ngawang drapa is a Khampa painter from this special place. At the age of fi ve， he saw a mural and fell in love with the art of painting. His early career was laden with successes. In primary school， middle school， and college， he was lucky enough to meet some accomplished teachers who appreciated his talent and gave him guidance. With raw talent， diligence， and opportunities， Ngawang Drapa soon became one of the hottest new painters in Tibet. His work， Untitled， won fi rst prize in Tibet’s contemporary art show in 1988. In that decade， in the valleys of eastern Tibet， the young painter pondered the meanings of art and life and came up with a series of works with a contemporary and global vision while rooted in the cultural landscape of his hometown， and these included Full Moon and Red Prayer Banner， Wind of March， Thunders of Autumn， and A Khampa Man. They won critical acclaim after being shown in Lhasa and beyond， and some were acquired by art institutions at home and abroad. Tashi Dawa， famous writer and the president of the Tibet Federation of Literary and Art Circles and the Tibet Writers Association， was so impressed by the bold images and thirst for life in those works that he still spoke of them enthusiastically twenty years later.

Between 1996 and 1997， Ngawang Drapa worked as one of the chief painters of the big-scale historical painting Drawing Lots from the Golden Urn and was fortunate enough to receive instructions from Wu Zuoren and Tenzin. The painting was such a big success that， twenty years later when the Tibet Autonomous Region started the “100 New Thangkas” project to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Peaceful Liberation of Tibet， they specifi cally commissioned a copy of it.

Ngawang Drapa knew from the very beginning that painting required a high level of cultural knowledge and artistic appreciation， without which one cannot produce substantial and moving works. Unable to fi nd his breakthrough， he was lost and confused for a period of time. Consequently， after a decade of a creative peak， he abruptly disappeared from public view and entered a period of self-imposed exile in which he did not produce any signifi cant new works but simply spent time in nature meditating at holy sites or reading in the rich and soothing aroma produced by Tibetan incense. As a result， he slowed himself down and rid himself of anxiety and fi ckleness. The renowned Chinese painter， Li Keran， once said， “To learn painting， you have to be humble enough to dig deep down to learn the tradition and to be brave enough to branch out to make innovations. Looking back is great， but looking forward is even more thrilling.”Ngawang Drapa put those words into practice.

Lessons in life helped him grow up and evolve as an artist. It gave him a new way to look at art and life. After a ten-year hiatus， he created a new set of works with a familiar， yet fresh， point of view. These oil paintings brim with deep thoughts on life. The human fi gures on them are towering and fl amboyant against the backdrops which are mostly fragments of sutra books. The images are majestic and lively， the composition simple and clear. After seeing his works， a vice president of the China Artists Association compared them to those of the Mexican painter， David Alfaro Siqueiros， for their visual impact. This was high praise from a pundit， but grateful as he was， Ngawang Drapa did not see much similarity between Siqueriros’s works and his own. He said that he understands that every life is a book， but thick ones are not necessarily more profound then thin ones. Just as Aristotle said， “The ultimate value of life depends upon awareness and the power of contemplation rather than upon mere survival.”

Han Shuli， President of the Tibetan Artists Association and renowned painter， believes Ngawang Drapa is a painter with a purpose， or， in Ngawang Drapa’s own words， a painter of portraits for people of the Hengduan Mountains. Therefore， in his works， we see faces with chiseled features and eyes fi xating on the white clouds and blue sky as if looking through the material world and at the unknown. Those paintings are more like spiritual portraits than physical ones. Admittedly， not every work of Ngawang Drapa’s has reached this level， but we do see his tremendous eff orts.

Ngawang Drapa’s works are also special in his choice of materials and techniques. Inspired by the Dutch painter， Rembrandt， he tries to make his own pigments. He studied plants and minerals from Tibetan doctors and how to extract pigments from minerals and plants from carpet makers. He also blends fl axseed oil with that of plateau walnuts from his hometown. After countless failures， his hard work has fi nally paid off . The pigments he creates can realize a rich yet translucent visual eff ect with good color retention. He said that he learned his line drawing and coloring technique for gradual changes from a trip to Mindroling monastery to copy the murals in its cloister twenty years ago. Those works of remarkable originality with such a recognizable individual style and local Khampa fl avors can only be made by someone who loves this amazing land， its nature， culture， and people. The boldness and ruggedness in the Khampa character are turned into a fl owing and lucid style， showing the artist’s strong personality and his deep understanding of the nature of art. Famous art critic， Liu Xilin， thinks that， by successfully utilizing special forms， special aesthetic symbols， and special artistic techniques， including special materials while keeping the tradition alive， Ngawang Drapa conveys driving passion to his viewers. The artist is well versed in realistic style， but his works always have something more. Both his early works built purely on emotions and his later， more balanced works， which focus more on culture， display the artist’s undeniable inherent talent. As an artist， the 50-year-old Ngawang Drapa is still in the prime of his life with a great future ahead of him. His works have wonderful depth， but artistic exploration knows no limits. After he had seen the Mona Lisa in the Louvre Museum in Paris， Ngawang Drapa felt a surge of emotions. He said， “To have been able to see the masterpiece I have admired for so long up close and personal has given me a sense of peace. What I saw was not the painting itself， but the enormous possibility of the creative human spirit. Marcel Duchamp once made a parody of the Mona Lisa by adding a mustache and goatee to her face. Now she is neither that nor the mysterious smile to me， but dead， as dead as a doornail.” I appreciate his confi dence of viewing the masters as his equals. Refl ection and innovation is the ladder of progress for art. The artist takes nourishment from tradition and keeps learning from cultural exchange with an open mind. To make something that is ugly and off ensive for the sake of style is not going to result in true originality. His style emerges organically from a respect for tradition and a focus on the current times. After twice winning the Qomolangma Literature and Arts Award， the top honor of Tibetan art， Ngawang Drapa has embarked on a new journey of exploration in art. Just like Li Keran’s words， he will“dig deep， branch out”， and march on.

It is my personal belief that， with his talent and dedication， still bigger things are in store for this artist in the future！