Thangkas, which were made famous by the Tibetan scroll artists and later spread to India and Nepal, are enjoying their share of popularity in the art market even now. In fact, they are auctioned in the overseas auctions by a Christie’s and Sotheby’s at periodic intervals and sometimes draw tall bids.

“Some of the art traditions have seen their ups and downs. But, among those forms which have maintained a level of creative productivity is the thangka tradition. And, depending on their period, quality and condition, they attract a good deal of attention at international auctions.

Thangkas have been auctioned internationally for at least the past half a century. They have been known to draw tall bids and fetch prices up to $5,00,000. These are the ones which date back to the earlier centuries. The more recent ones, which reflect imagination and aestheticism, can sell for around $5,000 or a little above that,” an art market source told ET.

Thangkas usually dwell on Buddha’s life and teachings and other religious themes and adorn monastery interiors and prayer and meditation rooms. They are created by highly skilled artists. A single thangka which is intricate and detailed can well take years to produce.

“The contemporary thangka artists picked up the art of yantra dia-grams from their mentors and are drawing on this knowledge to pro-duce abstract and tantric thangkas. Prices of the new thangkas hinge on the artists who have created them. The colours are original and extracted from vegetable dyes and powder. They are not always commercially available in the market. Usually, the medium revolves around tempera on cloth,” the source said.

Interestingly, back in Bengal, AP Munshi, who was associated with the legendary film maker Satyajit Ray, had created his brand of thangkas. These can viewed now, along with other older thangkas, at Kolkata’s well-known Chitrakoot Art Gallery. There are about 30 thangkas on show at the gallery.

(Collected from The  Economic Times dated 28 Dec 2007)

(For more information, please visit www.thangkatushita.com)