Namka Palzang (1398-1425)

This painting portrays the teacher Namkha Palzang (1398-1425) of Ralung Monastery in Tsang Province, western-central Tibet, and belongs to a large set depicting the lineage teachers of the Drukpa Kagyu School of Tibetan Buddhism. While the main figure is from central Tibet, the painting has a distinct eastern-Tibetan flavor and seems to suggest a special regional style associated with the Lhathok area, in Kham Provence, southeastern Tibet.

A special variation of the New Menri style of Kham took root by the mid- or late nineteenth century at Khampa Gar Monastery, a Drukpa Kagyu monastery in Lhathok in northwestern Kham. This style shares a number of common qualities with other local Kham painting traditions such as the Encampment style, including the indigo shading of the clouds, the transparent body nimbuses on the figures, and handling of the sky with steeply graded layers of indigo that quickly go from an intense blue to nearly blank canvas. There is also a fondness for hiding forms within craggy landscapes, such as various auspicious symbols--a conch shell, parasol, endless knot, and lion--surrounding the cave at the top left.