Pema Rinzin at the Joshua Liner Gallery

Summer Group Exhibition 2011, from August 4 to August 27, 2011.



Pema Rinzin is once again at the Joshua Liner Gallery for the Summer Group Exhibition. He is only showing a single large painting from the 'Water Series' he began several years ago - the third and last painting in the set. To really experience the gold work in the composition you really have to bend or kneel down below the painting and look up. Only from this angle does the gold become electric and magnify the vitality and feel of the painting. The work is stunning and the enormous number of hours put into the creation of the work really pay off when viewed in just the right way to see all the detail and layers of the textures and colours. Don't be afraid to get close up or to get down on one knee and look up.

Pema Rinzin - Opening Tonight

The First Tibetan Contemporary Solo Show in Chelsea, New York.
Opening: Jan 27th 2010 ( 06:00 PM to 09:00 PM)
Location: Joshua Liner Art Gallery
Artist: Pema Rinzin
Title: Compassion Transformed.

This is it! The opening is tonight at 6:00. I am looking forward to seeing a number of paintings on exhibition that I have not yet had a chance to see and enjoy, also the set of three abstract portraits.

Compassion Transformed - Pema Rinzin in Chelsea

The First Tibetan Contemporary Solo Show in Chelsea, New York.
Opening: Jan 27th 2010 ( 06:00 PM to 09:00 PM)
Location: Joshua Liner Art Gallery
Artist: Pema Rinzin
Title: Compassion Transformed.

For those of you who were at the first showing of Pema's work at the Joshua Liner Gallery in March of 09 and those who were also at the Rubin Museum of Art for the Tibetan Contemporary exhibition in the Spring - Get Ready! This new solo exhibition will blow the roof off. It is a must see. Mark it in your calendars and tell your friends. It will be a happening not to be missed. See you all there.

--- Jeff

The text below is copied from Artlog:

"Joshua Liner Gallery is pleased to present Compassion Transformed, an exhibition of new paintings by the New York-based Tibetan artist Pema Rinzin. Making his solo debut in New York, this is Rinzin’s first one-man exhibition at Joshua Liner Gallery. A master in the art of Thangka painting, Pema Rinzin has adapted... Read more

Joshua Liner Gallery is pleased to present Compassion Transformed, an exhibition of new paintings by the New York-based Tibetan artist Pema Rinzin. Making his solo debut in New York, this is Rinzin’s first one-man exhibition at Joshua Liner Gallery.

A master in the art of Thangka painting, Pema Rinzin has adapted the techniques and mystical motifs of this centuries-old Buddhist tradition to create spellbinding abstract works of contemporary art. Originally used in scrolls that depict the life of the Buddha, other deities, and religious figures, traditional Thangka featured the use of ground mineral pigments and gold applied to paper or silk cloth, as well as works in embroidery. Thangkas were objects of meditation, stimulation and religious education. The imagery is characterized by great intricacy in decorative pattern and brilliant color, which serve to advance the spiritual objectives of enlightenment and transcendence, while also conveying the artistic vision of individual master painters through unique expressions of style and composition.

In his stunning abstractions, Rinzin demonstrates how the individual artist can place his own stamp on a traditional form—he both transforms and transcends classical Thangka, while preserving its ancient artmaking techniques. His Peace and Energy series includes four large works on canvas that present a compelling image for contemplation: in each, a dynamic embolus of layered “handkerchief ” forms hums at the center of each picture against a traditional monochromatic background of bright orange, purple, white, or yellow. The fluttering, interlocking forms are thoroughly contemporary, but each carries a unique pattern derived from the ancient Buddhist traditions, and the whole is shot through with pulsing striped flames of blue, white, black, and gold.

In Rinzin’s Water series of four large works, these flames become an intricate network of liquid-like wave forms. This design is oriented vertically to carry upward an interpenetrating pattern of elaborate decoration, itself suggesting both sea foam and the blossoming of cherry trees. Rinzin’s Lost Portraits, however, take an entirely different tack.This series of three large works foregrounds the contemporary in hard-edged abstractions of classic Buddhist figures, each rendered in hot colors and spattered with sumi ink. Up close, the shattered facets comprising the figures reveal delicate patterns from both traditional Thangka and contemporary design. Compassion Transformed will also feature a variety of smaller works on paper.

As a young painter growing up in Dharamsala, India, Rinzin studied with Kalsang Oshoe, Khepa Gonpo, Rigdzin Paljor, and other master artists, but his work is equally inspired by Western art history, including such influ- ences as Gustav Klimt, Wassily Kandinsky, and William Blake. During his residency at the Rubin Museum of Art in New York, Rinzin gained notice with his inclusion in the Rubin’s 2010 group exhibition Tradition Transformed, the city’s first museum exhibition of contemporary Tibetan artists.

“After moving to New York, I was immediately exposed to street- and former graffiti artists,” says Rinzin.“They inspired me in their works with everyday life and raw emotion. Now, my art is really about my own life journey, which I strongly express in my compositions and abstract forms.”

Born in 1966 in Tibet and raised in India, Pema Rinzin received a degree in Tibetan Traditional Thangka Painting and Fine Art from Tibetan Children’s Village (TCV) Painting School in Dharamsala, India (where he also taught) and was twice honored “Best Tibetan Thangka Painter” (1979 and 1981); he currently lives and works in Brooklyn, New York. Solo exhibitions of his work include: Tibetan Fine Art Exhibition, Villa Dessauer, Bamberg, Germany (2005); Photo and Color Exhibition, Tibetan Art and Color Studio, Wurzburg, Germany (2001); Tibetan Fine Art Exhibition, Hobbit Theatre, Wurzburg, Germany (1999); and First Tibetan Fine Art Exhibition, Alexander- Schroeder-Haus, Wurzburg, Germany (1996). Selected group exhibitions include: Tradition Transformed, Rubin Museum of Art, New York and The Barnstormers, Joshua Liner Gallery, New York (2010); and Big! Himalayan Art, Crow Collection of Asian Art, Dallas, TX (2008) and Rubin Museum of Art, New York (2007). His Sixteen Giant Paintings are on permanent display at the Shoko-ji Cultural Research Institute, Nagano, Japan. From 2005 to 2008, Rinzin was artist-in-residence at the Rubin Museum of Art, and in 2007 he founded the New York Tibetan Art Studio, the only studio in the Western Hemisphere dedicated to the teaching and preservation of Tibetan art in both traditional and contemporary forms.

Joshua Liner Gallery, located in New York City’s Chelsea arts district, presents an exciting roster of established and emerging artists from North America, Asia, and Europe."

For more information, please visit www.joshualinergallery.com, or contact Tim Strazza at 212.244.7415 or tim@joshualinergallery.com."

Joshua Liner Gallery
548 West 28th Street,
New York, New York, 10001
Phone: (212) 244-7415
Email: info@joshualinergallery.com
Hours: Tuesday- Saturday 11-6PM

Pre-showing at the Joshua Liner Gallery

Today I had the good fortune of viewing the new art show at the Joshua Liner Gallery. They were busy hanging the remaining paintings and making ready for the official opening tomorrow night. I unfortunately will not be able to attend the opening because of another obligation in another city on the other side of the continent. However, today I was able to see most of the works. First of all, it is a much stronger show than the Barnstormers exhibition this past March. The caliber of art is much higher with a high degree of skill and talent immediately noticeable to the eye. Some amount of care has been given to the curating of the show in general and to the specific location and hanging of each piece. Pema Rinzin's two pieces are excellent and fit in very well adding to the over-all quality and the tremendous variety that this show offers. This opening has fewer pieces than the March exhibition and more space provided for each of the works. It is a real treat to move from piece to piece and explore the individual artist's subject, composition and creativity. There are a number of wildly, brightly coloured, and imaginative pieces that draw the eye and don't let go. You will have to experience that for yourself. This is surely an exhibition for the three general groups of people that attend art openings, the interested public, artists and the connoisseur collectors.

Art Opening - Saturday Night - Aug.14th

Remember, if you live in the New York area, the opening of the Joshua Liner Gallery Summer Group Show is on Saturday August 14th at 6:00 p.m. Pema will have two new works of art on view - abstract fine art. To see three other abstract works by Pema Rinzin visit the Rubin Museum of Art for the Tibetan Contemporary exhibition, closes October 18, 2010.

Artist on Art Talk: New York

Pema Rinzin "Tradition Transformed"
Date: Friday, July 16, 2010
Time: 6:00pm - 7:00pm
Location: Rubin Museum of Art
Street: 150 West 17th Street
City/Town: New York, NY

Description:
Artists featured in the exhibition Tradition Transformed give a guided interpretation of their work and objects - in the exhibition.

Information about the Artist:
Pema Rinzin was born in Tibet in 1966 while his family was in route to India, where he spent his formative years. He studied with Kalsang Oshoe, Khepa Gonpo, Rigdzin Paljor and many other master artists in Dharamsala from 1979-1983. Rinzin taught Renaissance, Impressionist, cartoon and Abstract Impressionist art for eight years at the Tibetan Children's Village School in Dharamsala. Rinzin worked and taught at the Shoko-ji Cultural Research Institute in Nagano, Japan, from 1995 to 2004. From 2002 until 2005, Rinzin divided his time between Japan and Würzburg, Germany where he was an artist-in-residence at the Brush & Color Studio. Beginning in November 2005 through October 2008, Rinzin was an artist in residence at the Rubin Museum of Art in New York. His paintings have been exhibited internationally and are held in numerous public and private collections worldwide, most notably at Shoko-ji Cultural Research Institute in Nagano, Japan, and the Rubin Museum of Art. He has mounted numerous art exhibitions from traditional Tibetan art to contemporary and modern abstract photography, and lectures on Tibetan art. Rinzin lives in New York.

A 17th Century Tibetan Contemporary Artist

Probably one of the most famous Tibetan contemporary artists of his time was the 10th Karmapa, Choying Dorje (1604-1674). It is said that he was trained in a traditional Menri Style and then later studied in a Kashmiri style. What is obviously apparent is that the examples of his work that have come down to us today are in a unique style - the style of Choying Dorje. (The first image is by the current contemporary artist Pema Rinzin of New York. The three images of paintings below are by the 10th Karmapa Choying Dorje).

See other works of art by Choying Dorje.

For the multi-faced and armed deity, note the gate-like halo surrounding the main figure. It is created to appear as if water, manipulated and suspended. Also see the throne beneath the central subject, rendered with the same treatment, and added figures supporting the pink lotus.

Probably the most unique set of paintings created by Choying Dorje is the life story of Shakyamuni Buddha. No explanation should be required, all that one need to do is look to see how special it is. Look at the colours, the forms, the composition, the rendering of the human figures, animals and birds.

The 10th Karmapa was also famous for his depictions of animals and birds. Notice in this painting of a yellow goddess how the sow and piglets beneath the deity figure are rendered far more life-like with a richness of detail than the yellow deity herself.

A capital 'C' contemporary artist, although sometimes trained traditionally, is often somebody that breaks the rules and is innovative. Sometimes the artist is copied and a new style is created and at other times nobody can follow where that artist has gone.

Choying Dorje is an example of a contemporary artist that was not followed by other artists. It can't really be said that he was a traditional Tibetan artist either - he was an innovative contemporary artist of his time. I believe that he had a love of art, and of animals - clearly shown in his paintings and biography - and I believe that he created art for art's sake.

A Review by Art Daily News

Pema Rinzin (1966 - ), Peace and Energy 1, 2009. Ground mineral pigments and gold on cloth, 41 x 61 in. Collection of the artist.

"NEW YORK, NY.- There is no Tibetan equivalent for the word “art” as it is known in the West. The closest approximation is lha dri pa, literally, “to draw a deity.” Traditionally, neither the Tibetan language nor the Tibetan cultural framework has recognized art for art’s sake, and an artist’s efficacy rests in his ability to precisely replicate an established visual language and portray the essence of a particular deity." (Artdaily.org).

All I can say is that the above statement is WRONG. It is WRONG, WRONG, WRONG. Good artists and great artists all over the world from the beginning of time have created art as a statement, and beauty for beauty's sake, quality for quality's sake, and art for art's sake.

From Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, 1600. Juliet:
"... that which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet;..."

I don't fault the online magazine for this statement above. It is clearly lifted from the gallery catalogue produced to accompany the current Tibetan Contemporary exhibition. It is unfortunate and sad that all things Tibetan must be looked at through the narrow glasses of religion - and Tibetan Buddhist religion at that.

Maybe in this field of Tibetan art, traditional and contemporary, it is time to rely less on religious studies professors, historians, anthropologists, ethnographers and, yes, Tibetologists and rely more on Art Historians and Art Critics. Maybe it is time to rely on the experts who's job it is to discuss and critique the subject of art: technique, skill, style, harmony, colour balance and beauty. The subject of religion will still remain the domain of religious teachers and scholars. The subject of history will still remain the domain of historians. The subject of iconography will still remain the domain of iconographers. None of this will change.

Some of the earliest and most famous Tibetan contemporary artists of their time were Mantangpa(15th c.), Khyentse (15th c.), Choying Dorje (17th c.), Choying Gyatso (17th c.), Cho Tashi (17/18th c.), and Kangdze Lhadripa (18th c.), amongst many, many others. There is a long history of tradition and change in the Tibetan art culture along with tremendous innovation in technique, style and composition. THIS IS NOT NEW!

Please don't put the Tibetan artist back in the cave just for the sake of preserving a - Western conceived - Tibetan Buddhist attitude and monopoly on how to look at all things Tibetan.

Take off the binding chains of religious orthodoxy and oppression.
Let the Artist Go! Free the Tibetan Artists! Free the Tibetan Artists!

Tibetan Contemporary Art Exhibition - The Opening

The Rubin Museum of Art is having its 'members opening' tonight, along with invited guests, for the new Tibetan Contemporary Exhibition. This is a perk for members of the museum. For the general public the show opens tomorrow at 11:00.

Why do I care? Well, I have many issues with how Himalayan and Tibetan art is presented and understood in the West and I believe that by also looking at - what is called - Tibetan contemporary art there can be an actual dialogue about art, both old and new. Generally, almost always, any discussion of Tibetan art centers on iconography and religion, or Tibetan-Chinese politics. There is very rarely any discussion about the art itself, the aesthetics, the uniqueness of Tibetan art, brush stroke and colour, let alone the poor forgotten artist that is completely free of ego yet always told what to do by a Lama. Alas, the poor artist, ignorant of what he is doing, yet humble and egoless. That is the traditional Western model of a good Tibetan Artist.

The fact that people still believe this old tired religious model of Tibetan art, teach it and publish it in art & gallery catalogues is amazing yet sad. All of this must change! The field of Himalayan and Tibetan Art History must move into the 20th and 21st century and begin to look at art the same way that art from other great art producing cultures is looked at - uniqueness, beauty, harmony, technique, and aesthetics - not just from a narrow one sided religious perspective. All of this must change.

For those of you in New York the after party to celebrate Pema's first museum exhibition will be at Merchant's around the corner from the RMA at 8:00 in the downstairs room (with the fireplace).

Tibetan Style Tattoos

Well I'm not into getting tattoos, piercings or brandings but I love Japanese tattoo art, Hawaiian, Maori, Thai, Burmese, Laotian and Cambodian. Yoni Zilbur, an artist as well as an accomplished New York tattoo artist has studied with Pema Rinzin for several years and now designs his own tattoos based on traditional Tibetan subjects, themes and motifs. Some of the images are really quite amazing. Check out Yoni's webpage to see Pema Rinzin's influence on the New York tattoo scene.

Contemporary Tibetan Art - An Exhibition

I am certainly not knowledgeable nor particularly interested in Tibetan contemporary art but the Rubin Museum of Art in New York is mounting an exhibition that opens in June. An artist represented in this exhibition (with three large canvases) happens to be a very good friend of mine and I would be remiss if I did not take the opportunity to promote him and his art. I think his art is very, very, good.

I for one am quite tired of some contemporary Tibetan art where it is a simplistic tracing of a Buddha image or the overdone juxtaposition of the Buddha and Mao, and I understand that art has always been a vehicle for politics just as literature. However, sometimes I just want to see good art masterfully done, creative, interesting, refreshing and new that makes me smile and engages me visually. I want to see a work of art where the more I look at the piece the more I see, and the more time I spend with the piece, the more time I want to spend - like a visual feast. I want to feel it from the inside and if someone has to explain it to me - then I have obviously missed it, or maybe it wasn't there in the first place. For me, art that has to be explained in order to be understood and appreciated is not great art - it is only a visual-intellectual statement.

Another artist, more familiar with contemporary art than me, I think says it best, "WOW, Pema's painting you included is KILLER! as soon as I saw it (the second one) and started reading your article, I was hoping that it was one of his! A lot of contemporary art I've seen by Tibetan artists is so predictable and lame, if not cheap and exploitative. It's great to see Pema's work - beautiful, thoughtful, and sophisticated! It's so great to see a work of contemporary Tibetan art that doesn't make use of the tired silhouette of the buddha! In fact, there really isn't much in Pema's painting that relates to (or falls back on) his identity as a Tibetan or his Tibetan ancestry. It's refreshing to know there's at least one Tibetan contemporary artist who's moved beyond that! perhaps there's hope after all...." (Currently anonymous).

Pema Rinzin is one of the only Tibetan artists that I know who has trained in the traditional way of 'tangka' and mural painting and that has also successfully transitioned into contemporary painting while still creating and teaching the so-called 'traditional' art.

The first image above is a small detail of a large painting that will be on display at the Rubin Museum of Art. The second two images are from the Joshua Liner Gallery where Pema exhibited in the early spring of 2010. He exhibited three paintings in that Chelsea New York show and all three sold. The second image (above) - that painting sold the first night of the Joshua Liner show. Aside from the RMA exhibition opening in June, Pema has another group show coming up in August - again in Chelsea. There is also talk of a solo show in the near future. (See Artist Biography and New York Tibetan Art Studio. For more information on the RMA exhibition see the link below).

Tradition Transformed, June 11, 2010 - October 18, 2010.

"Tradition Transformed: Tibetan Artists Respond marks the first exhibition of contemporary Tibetan art in a New York City museum. The nine Tibetan artists featured each explore contemporary issues--personal, political, and cultural--by integrating the centuries-old traditional imagery, techniques, and materials found in Tibetan Buddhist art with modern influences and media. (More info)."

Pema Rinzin was an artist in residence at the RMA for three years and produced a number of works during that time. The drawing of Himalayan 'Animals, Foliage and Landscape' was done in the gallery space during the highly successful 'Bon, The Magic Word' exhibition in 2007. The painting (below) of the Four Guardian Kings was the first painting that Pema completed while at the RMA. It was also first displayed in the RMA exhibition 'Big!' also in 2007, followed by the Trammell Crow museum in Dallas in 2008. I believe his three special skills that set him apart from the rest are [1] drawing, [2] composition and [3] colour balance.