Tibetan Calligraphy, Part 2

Born to a Buddhist family in the United Kingdom, Tashi Mannox first took notice of the Tibetan language at about the age of 13, when he spent time with two Tibetan Lamas. At the age of 22, Tashi himself took the precepts of a Buddhist monk. Being artistically inclined, he developed his Tibetan writing skills while working as a scribe. This labor of devotion and discipline honed his skills, not just in the classical Uchen script, but the many other Tibetan script styles. His teachers in Tibetan calligraphy include H.E. Tai Situ Rinpoche and Akong Tulku Rinpoche, and he has studied Lantsa Sanskrit with Lama Pema Lodrup of Dharmsala. Since leaving his monastic lifestyle, Tashi has continued working in the preservation and conservation of the Tibetan writing systems. In response to an ever-growing interest in Tibetan Calligraphy, he teaches master classes and lectures worldwide, including at Oxford University and the Rubin Museum of Art in New York City. In recent years, Tashi was invited to help re-establish the (Tibetan) Bhutanese calligraphy tradition to the kingdom’s educational and monastic institutions. The Khenpo of the central monastic body of Bhutan gave Tashi the honored title of Ambassador of Bhutanese Calligraphy. Tashi is now recognized as one of the world’s foremost contemporary Tibetan calligraphers and dharma artists, exhibiting his masterpieces internationally, including at the Moscow Calligraphy Museum, the Sharjah Calligraphy Museum in the United Arab Emirates, and the World Calligraphy Biennale of Jeollabuk-do in South Korea. Tashi is also the author of Sacred Scripts, which was endorsed by His Holiness the Dalai Lama.