A BUDDHIST

PERSPECTIVE ON
CONCEPTUAL ART
By Dakini As Art: Text and images, Tiffani Gyatso | 2016-05-03 |
Art for art’s sake has never been an overriding motivation in
Tibetan culture or Tibetan Buddhism. For example, we can
understand thangka painting, the sacred art of depicting icons,
as a meditational tool. This article will explore these two
diverging viewpoints: art made with the objective of serving
the spirit and art made spontaneously as its expression.

Let us begin by examining our understanding of the concept of

an image. An image can be perceived in many ways. First is the
physical way, in which we recognize images of the manifest
world through our eyes. But there are also images that we
recognize without relying on our physical senses: those that
appear in a dream, emerging from the subconscious mind;
memories; hallucinations; or simply those we conjure up. This
imaginary world is constantly present and plays a significant
role in our lives, both while we are asleep and during our
waking hours.

The artist works within this infinite repertoire of possibilities.

Each image has a meaning and each meaning can be universal
or it can be intimately personal. In the same way that one uses
imagery to influence people to buy a product through a TV
commercial, one can also use the power of imagery to awaken
and enlighten.

Images can provoke horror or they can inspire pleasure or

divine experiences, so the artist who works with the imaginary
holds quite some responsibility. In most cases, artists express
their vision of what they see and sense, materializing their own
internal world; however, artists can also learn from the obverse
approach—using outer images to influence their inner world.
By depicting images of enlightenment, the artist might reach
the state of being that the image represents. In Tibetan sacred
art, the artist does not focus on his or her own vision of the
world, but is trained to repeat the same divine image over and
over again, allowing each repetition to permeate a deeper layer
of consciousness and shape it with the motivation of a
bodhisattva—someone who, motivated by compassion, has
generated bodhichitta, the wish to attain buddhahood for the
benefit of all sentient beings. In surrendering to the process,
sacred artists are influenced, transformed, and shaped, to
finally merge with what they are representing: the Buddha
mind.
In conceptual art, in which the artist is the source of the image
or the inspiration behind a piece of art, consciousness and
expression emerge simultaneously with the experience of
producing, presenting, and observing. A path to experiencing
Buddha mind is also possible through this type of artistic
creation, likewise through a kind of training that continuously
guides one’s eye and motivation.
For example, let us say that the artist has a vision of goodness,
expressed in the form of a small white feather placed in a
completely empty room. The observer can enter the room and
simply not connect with or understand the expression. But
when one opens one’s mind to the experience, that subtle,
minimalistic manifestation of “goodness” suddenly generates a
great deal of mental space, merging the observer’s
understanding of goodness with that of the artist. It is a glimpse
of the sense of “goodness” (although it could also be much
more subjective than that), which also allows for a very broad
and liberal interpretation.

In the Heart Sutra, the Buddha teaches that “Form is emptiness;

emptiness is form.” By observing all forms, images, and
phenomena without judgment, one can realize the experience
of emptiness. Ultimately, all things are covered with the same
fabric; they simply assume different shapes, changing all the
time. When we look at a work of art, we might see the majestic
David by Michelangelo, for instance, or merely a piece of rock
—both are true, both have significance, but only in our mind.
Our experiences lead us to apprehend and believe in a certain
way. So, if we wish, we can train our eye and motivation to
perceive everything as sacred, and consequently enjoy a sacred
and joyful life—simply by training the eye!
Art teaches us a great deal about perspective. How can one
person view a picture and be moved by its meaning while
someone else sees only a blur of color? The picture is the same,
but the perspective and the apparent individualism are
different. The picture is a wonderful experience for the person
who sees it as art and a joke for the one who sees a blur. In the
end, is the picture wonderful or is it a joke? It is neither. In fact,
it is what you want to it be, or even a mirror of who you really
are. If you see beauty it is because you allow beauty to exist
within your being.
The path of an artist is an eloquent way to touch that fabric, to
experiment, to play, to create, to see its impermanent cycles,
and to be detached from a fixed significance—including that of
our own identity. This type of training can offer a form of
Buddhist insight through an experience of the art, offering the
artist and the viewer a path to enlightenment. One can
experience this through traditional training without the creative
element but instead with discipline and obedience, or one can
find it within the creation of uninhibited, conceptual art. One
can even follow both paths at the same time, using both
traditional and contemporary art as one’s two “legs” on the
journey to enlightenment and thus walking the path of the
artist-pilgrim.

Tiffani Gyatso is a traditional Buddhist thangka painter and a member

of the Dakini As Art Collective. To learn more about Tiffani, her work,
and Dakini As Art, please visit Dakini As Art.

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Tiffani Gyatso