Overview of Thangka Paintings

Thangka paintings are Tibetan and Nepalese scroll paintings which were historically used by travelling monks and lamas to educate people about Buddhist doctrines and precepts. The tradition of Tibetan thangka painting emerged from an Indian tradition. Similar paintings called pautas and paubhas were created in India and Nepal during the 10th century and were discovered by travelling Tibetan monks. Noticing their beauty as well as their practicality, these monks brought these paintings back to Tibet. Today you will likely see a thangka displayed during a festival or at an annual market. In addition to serving as teaching tools, Thangkas can also be used for meditation and protective purposes. The viewer will often meditate on the deity and surrounding figures. In addition, people often commision artists to create thangkas as an aid for overcoming personal and family problems. In this way, thangkas serve as objects which radiate positive energy and good luck.

Thangka painters use a set of well defined guidelines when creating these paintings. The paintings are usually symmetrical with the main deity featured in the center. The painter will often feature yidams, buddhas, bodhissatvas, dakinis, dharmpalas, lokapalas around the deity. The supreme teacher or primary divinity will often be featured at the top of the image. The thangka painting system also dictates that figures be painted in a grid structure and have a predetermined size. The size of the person is based on their importance.

For Tibetan Buddhists, thangka paintings serve a religious rather than an aesthetic purpose. In Tibet, thangkas can be displayed in temples, tents, or in a personal home and can also be rolled up for travel. For many Westerners, thangkas serve a purely aesthetic purpose.

Thangkas are usually rectangular in shape and are painted on a thin piece of canvas. While the thangka is painted, the canvas is threaded onto a frame. The canvas is sized with an animal glue made from boiled bones and skins. The gesso is made of lime and rice flour. After preparing the canvas, the artist will next begin to sketch his design. He uses a grid which is composed of eight lines. When the drawing is complete the artist begins to paint with the help of his assistants. The background and landscape are painted first. The lesser deities or people will be painted next. Lastly, the main deity or person will be painted. The face and eyes will be painted last respectively. When the painting is finished it will be removed from the frame and a silk border will be placed around the painting. Dowels will be placed at the top and bottom of the frame. Occasionally a think piece of silk cloth will hang over the front of the painting so that is will be hidden from the view of the uninitiated and protected from the effects of light and soot.