Posts Tagged ‘Statues’

“Art of Enlightenment” Exhibition in Brighton

Tuesday, May 29th, 2012
Dorje Chang Statue

Dorje Chang Statue

In connection with the ‘Space for Mind, Space for Art: treasures of Tibetan Buddhism and contemporary responses‘ which is happening this week at The Spring Project, in Lambeth, London, the sangha in Brighton decided to put on their own exhibition ‘Art of Enlightenment’.

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History of the World in 100 Objects – Statue of Tara

Thursday, December 2nd, 2010
Tara in the British Museum (photo: Rafal Portas)

Tara in the British Museum (photo: Rafal Portas)

A History of the World in 100 Objects” was a joint project of BBC Radio 4 and the British Museum, comprising a 100-part radio series written and presented by British Museum director Neil MacGregor. In 15-minute presentations broadcast on weekdays on Radio 4, MacGregor used objects of ancient art, industry, technology and arms, all of which are in the British Museum’s collections, as an introduction to parts of human history. The series began in January 2010 and was broadcast over 20 weeks. Several of the objects had Buddhist significance, which we’re sharing here on the blog.

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Opening the Buddhas’ eyes in the London Centre

Sunday, November 21st, 2010
Intense concentration is needed to paint the fine details of the Buddha's eyes

Intense concentration is needed to paint the fine details of the Buddha's eyes

When Lama Ole Nydahl visited London in September 2010 and blessed the newly-filled Buddha statues (see this blog entry) he recommended that we “open their eyes”. So earlier in November 2010, our London Buddhist Centre was transformed into a workshop, where a group of friends spent a long weekend working with these centre statues as well as a collection of smaller statues belonging to individuals. This delicate “eye-opening” process involves painting the heads and faces of the statues with gold and specially prepared paint, as well as adding precious stones in places such as the crowns and ornaments of certain forms. Leo Grzyb was invited from Slovakia to London to guide the workshop. Leo has spent several years studying traditional Kagyu Buddhist art under the close tutelage of Denzong Norbu, probably the greatest living master of the Karma Gardri style of thangka painting who received its transmission directly from the 16th Karmapa. We’d like to share some impressions from the workshop, click on the thumbnails below to enlarge.

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“Sculptural Perfection!” – statue of Red Wisdom

Saturday, October 2nd, 2010
Close-up of Red Wisdom's face

Close-up of Red Wisdom's face

The Himalayan Art website has just posted this blog entry aptly entitled “Sculptural Perfection”:

This Vajravarahi sculpture, for its time and type, is surely one of the finest ever created. Also view the five detail images. The face is beautiful although likely re-painted in the recent past. The body proportions and movement are excellent. The ornamentation is precise and detailed, also textually accurate. The elaborate scarf (not part of the textual description) is beautifully excessive with studded semi-precious stones – likely original to the piece – framing the central figure and bringing the entire sculpture to a fullness that is greater than the sum of the parts. Sculptural perfection – art and iconography!

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Space for Mind event in London, 4-13 June 2010

Monday, June 14th, 2010

Advertisement for “Space for Mind”

We’d like to share some impressions from an enormously successful ten-day long series of events held by Diamond Way Buddhism UK from 4-13 June 2010 at the Novas Contemporary Urban Centre on Bankside, London.

The programme included a series of talks, movies, exhibits and guided meditations aimed at introducing Tibetan Buddhism’s profound methods for understanding the mind and discovering lasting happiness. The theme “Space for Mind” was borrowed from the working title of the project to purchase a new London Buddhist Centre. In particular, the programme was geared towards offering Diamond Way Buddhism to the London Borough of Southwark and the people who live and work there.

Throughout the ten days there was an exhibition of Tibetan Buddhist art entitled “Expressions of Enlightenment”. A number of beautifully crafted examples of Tibetan Buddhist statues and scroll paintings (thangkas) were displayed together with explanations of their deep symbolism and use as aids for meditation. Tours of the exhibition were offered each weekday from noon to 7pm, together with the opportunity for visitors to take part in short guided meditations.

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The Sultanganj Buddha, Birmingham

Sunday, May 30th, 2010

Sultanganj Buddha

Sultanganj Buddha

The Sultanganj Buddha is the largest complete bronze figure of its kind in the world. It was found in the North Indian town of Sultanganj, Bhagalpur district, Bihar. The statue has been dated by archaelogists at between 500 to 700 AD. It is 223 centimeters high and 1 meter wide, and weighs about 500kgs. It is a splendid example of the renowned Gupta sculptural style which itself had been shaped by European and Persian influences that came to India through the trade routes with Rome and West Asia. It was cast using the lost wax technique, in which a solid core of clay is overlaid with wax. The sculptor models the fine details in the wax coating. (more…)

Statue of the Eighth Karmapa Mikyo Dorje

Tuesday, March 23rd, 2010
8th Karmapa Mikyo Dorje

8th Karmapa

In this blog entry on Karma Kagyu Buddhist iconography, we present a famous Buddha statue of the Eighth Karmapa Mikyo Dorje. The Eighth Karmapa (1507-1554) is of particular significance in Diamond Way Buddhism. An important Karma Kagyu Lineage master, through his spiritual genius and profound understanding of mind, he composed the particularly powerful meditation practice Guru Yoga in Four Sessions (Tib. tun shi lami naljor). Known simply as the 8th Karmapa Meditation, it is commonly practised by Diamond Way Buddhists who have completed the Four Foundational Practices (Tib. Ngondro) of Tibetan Buddhism.

The picture and text below are taken from the book “Karmapa, the Black Hat Lama of Tibet” by Nik Douglas and (more…)