Hanged in the atrium of 659 Wrightwood in Chicago is a three-story installation of vibrant prayer flags in yellow, green, white, red and blue that cascade down from above. Five sculptural horses emerge at various points through the lush textile curtain and appear to gallop in the air.
The color of each flag refers to the five elements and moods in Tibetan Buddhism. For example, yellow represents earth and wisdom, while green refers to water and equanimity. White is air and purity, blue is space and endurance, and red refers to fire and compassion.
By Bhutanese artist Asha Kama Wangdithe monumental work uses the Buddhist tradition of longta (wind horses), symbols of positive energy and good luck that are believed to carry prayers to heaven. For this installation, the artist collected torn and worn flags that had broken loose and were scattered across the landscape. This shift from spiritual object to a source of pollution inspired Asha Kama Wangdi, as he explored the contradiction between sacred practices and environmental care.
“The Windhorse” is one of dozens of works included in the film Reimagine: art from the Himalayas Nowa large-scale exhibition curated by Michelle Bennett Simorella of the Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art in New York. As the title suggests, the show aims to provide a more contemporary look at Tibet, Nepal, Bhutan and other Himalayan regions.
Bennett Simorella commissioned 28 artists to combine objects from the Rubin’s collection with their works, contextualizing contemporary aesthetics and making practices within a long history of artists and craftsmen. Featuring works from hundreds of kilometers of the Himalayan region, Imagine again is broad in scope, style and medium, yet maintains distinct lines.
For example, a New York-based artist Losel Yauch presents a riderless cavalry of woven horses in ‘Procession Immemorial’, which similarly builds on the concept of wind horses. Stitched onto their silk coats are images from stories the artist’s grandfather shared about the struggle for freedom in his home of Kham in eastern Tibet.
There is also a lively collection of paintings on display Shraddha Shresthawhich reinterprets the doe-eyed Powerpuff Girls as Hindu goddesses. The artist grew up in Patan, one of Nepal’s most historic cities, and shares there a statement:
Growing up in a conservative, patriarchal Newari household meant staying within many cultural, social, and gender boundaries. All the girls and women in my family were used to swearing, unwanted looks from the neighbors, being scolded by male relatives for getting dressed with our knees showing, being judged for walking with a male friend, and being scolded for walking in the dark. came home.
After school, Shraddha Shrestha enjoyed watching American cartoons, especially the superpowered trio. These animated characters quickly became fixtures in her imaginary world, which combined facets of her hometown with the girls’ strong-willed attitudes.
“Womanhood should be celebrated. Instead, we must fight for basic things like education, work, health and more,” she says. “Doesn’t this contradict the tradition we believe in? Is it not contempt for the gods we worship?”
The second version of Imagine againwhich was originally shown at the Rubin earlier this year, is on view through February 15.
