Rabkar Wangchuk: Mystery of Life (#141)
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This episode of the Wisdom Podcast, recorded live as a Wisdom Dharma Chat, features contemporary Tibetan artist Rabkar Wangchuk. Traditionally trained, Rabkar studied for seventeen years at Gyudmed Tantric University, where he also received training in Tibetan thangka painting and arts. After moving to the West, Rabkar’s style has continued evolving into its own unique form, bringing humor and a depth of meditative searching and self-awareness to the work. We’ll be celebrating the launch of Rabkar’s first solo exhibit, Mystery of Life, which includes his colorful pop-art acrylic paintings, mineral pigment on silk pieces, and 3D installations.
In this episode, Rabkar and Daniel discuss
- Rabkar’s youth in South India, balancing family and monastic life;
- being selected for the artisan path and his apprenticeship in the tantric arts;
- the role of art and artistic training in Buddhist contexts;
- his architectural projects and other works with the Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts (TIPA);
- traditional Tibetan painting materials and techniques and contemporary influences;
- Rabkar’s journey in life and work leading to his current show, Mystery of Life;
- and much more.
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About the Interviewee
Born in Dharamsala, India, Rabkar studied Tibetan Buddhist Tantra and Philosophy for seventeen years at Gyudmed Tantric University in South India. Rabkar received training in Tibetan thangka painting and arts from revered Tibetan masters such as Venerable Ngawang Norbu and Venerable Sangye Yeshi. After moving to the West, Rabkar’s style has continued evolving into its own unique form. Using both traditional Tibetan Buddhist artistic methods and contemporary styles, he merges Tibetan imagery with modern iconography of consumerism and hybrid identities. His approach melds light and dark, East and West, in extraordinary and unexpected ways, bringing humor and a depth of meditative searching and self-awareness to the work.
