MASTER BRUSHWORKS: Pema Rinzin x Kapoor Galleries

5 July 2024 6 p.m.

OPENING NIGHT:

Kapoor Galleries presents Master Brushworks, showcasing new and previously shown paintings by Brooklyn-based Tibetan artist Pema Rinzin. This will be Rinzin’s fourth solo exhibition in New York and his first with Kapoor Galleries, featuring twelve paintings rendered in ground mineral pigments, sumi ink, and gold.

The works in Rinzin’s exhibition embody self-expression and attention to detail. As the title of the exhibition suggests, the artist’s works emphasize brushwork and drawing - the foundations of Thangka painting and the first skills he developed during his artistic training. Rinzin’s work is influenced by his years living in Japan, where he was exposed to Chinese, Korean, and Japanese traditions of brushwork, especially the work of Hokusai and the Kano school. “Master brushwork means you can see depth and color in the black and white of sumi-ink art. If you pay attention to the brushwork of Tibetan art, it is the same. Drawing and brushwork are the essence of Tibetan art.”

The artist’s works depict various species of birds, marine life, stylized clouds, flowers, and gems. All of these are motifs that recur throughout the history of Thangka painting, elements of nature that represent peace, joy, and prosperity. Rinzin has taken them out of the background of traditional Thangkas and brought them into the forefront of his contemporary style. “A master artist’s style is defined by their self-expression. When I paint birds and fishes, I don’t think of them as animals, I portray them with human-like expressions. They are sentient beings like us after all, and each one has character, just like every person has a unique personality. When I paint, my emotions are reflected in their faces, in the motion of the fish and the flight of the birds.”

“My style is about freedom, flow. You can always tell a great artist by the freedom of the figures and composition in their work,” Rinzin elaborates. This conception is powerfully displayed in the Wings of Joy series. Flocks of birds in black sumi and orange cinnabar ink perch atop golden spheres; rendered in dynamic brushstrokes they seem to fly across the canvas. Rinzin also showcases his signature style in Bird Mandala (Orange). The artist adopts a pattern of concentric circles as seen in traditional mandala paintings, using various ground mineral pigments and gold. Each circle is overlaid with throngs of pheasants, cranes, owls and parrots delicately illustrated in Sumi ink.

With the importance of self-expression and the individual artist’s style in mind, Rinzin hopes that people take a look at Tibetan art with a new perspective. “Tibetan art is not just about Buddhas and bodhisattvas, it is about the artist’s self-expression. Traditional Thangka painters focused on brushing each line like it was an entire painting. They made their colors from minerals that came from the earth under their feet. My work shows that level of care, and hopefully it helps you to notice that level of care in the exceptional thangka collection of Kapoor Galleries.”