4 Creatives In Bhutan Blazing A Trail In Contemporary Art

A new generation of creatives has joined the old guard in keeping the artistic spirit of Bhutan alive, but this time with a contemporary twist. If you find yourself lucky enough fly over the majestic Himalayas and land in the Kingdom of Bhutan, you’ll soon be greeted by the multi-dimensional beauty of a Bhutanese contemporary art exhibition at the Paro International Airport. The majority of artists who contributed to the collection are affiliated with the local organization, Voluntary Artists’ Studio of Bhutan (VAST), founded in 1998 to empower and foster contemporary art in Bhutan. With the support of His Majesty The King and the mentorship of VAST’s pioneering Founder, Asha Kama, Bhutanese creatives are helping to shape the landscape of art in the Kingdom. It is clear VAST is contributing to the collective imagination and vitality of the country. Take it from Passang Dema, the Executive Director of VAST, who insists that the organization would be listed “Number 1” on the “Forbes Happiness 500 List.”

The international airport exhibition is only the tip of the Bhutanese contemporary-art iceberg. Artists can be found at VAST headquarters, laughing, creating, envisioning, and building a social movement to create more opportunities for aspiring contemporary artists across the Kingdom. Many of VAST’s members now have their own studios, while others have traveled to other countries to continue their artistic careers. To celebrate the growing contemporary art scene of Bhutan and raise awareness on the need for continued support, here are interviews with four Bhutanese creatives blazing a trail in modern art. This list is nowhere close to being exhaustive. It presents just a glimpse of the impact and potential of Bhutan’s contemporary art movement, and just a few of its changemakers molding new artistic futures in the Kingdom.

Karma Tenzin Choten (“Karzin”), 28, Artist and VAST Gallery Art Director

Karma Tenzin Choten, better known by her friends as “Karzin,” was always surrounded by the arts. Her mother painted, her brother danced, her aunt weaved, her father sang, and she read. She could often be found in her room, reading illustrated books, which, along with her artsy family, inspired her artistic journey.

“Watching my family filled with inspiration, their eyes sparkling when they were doing art…That’s how I got into dance, concerts, and painting pictures. But I also helped my aunt with weaving,” recalled Karzin.

As Karzin began discovering her own contemporary artistic style, she kept an eye toward Bhutan’s traditional art history. In college, she was a research assistant on both contemporary and traditional art in Bhutan. Then, she was introduced to VAST.

“I was inspired by them (VAST) and found my community in that little area on the outside of town. So I stuck around.”

Today, she serves as VAST’s Gallery Art Director.

“As the Gallery Art Director, I curate and research artists. I studied sociology and political science, and I did not study art history. So right now, I read as much as possible about artistic movements, including in my own country, and how it came about from India and Tibet.”

Karzin is also an active artist in her own right.

“My art is childlike. When I sketch, I really want the color to pop. I do art that is close to my heart. I take pictures of a moment I want to remember. I capture and feel, and when I paint it, I want the warmth to embrace me.”

“I love drawing portraits of people I adore, animals I adore, elderly people I adore. Family, friends, dogs, and cats I see around. I have a cat named Momo. Memories that I want to keep alive. I just want the everyday human part of us as a reminder for the viewers to just enjoy the randomness, the beauty in simplicity.”

When she needs inspiration, Karzin looks toward the genius of Van Gogh.

“I always saw Van Gogh and was always intrigued by his story. I really admire his lust for life. How passionate he was. How people thought he was insane. How he never had someone who understood him. That is the sad part yet the beauty of Van Gogh is that even though no one understood him, he kept on creating.”

Although she has seen the contemporary art scene in Bhutan grow over the years, Karzin expressed that more support for contemporary art is needed to achieve the vision of empowering artists who want to make a living outside of traditional art.

“Around the world, artists are struggling. Here in Bhutan, it is also hard to make a living as a contemporary artist. We are still in that renaissance period of contemporary art. Here there is mostly support for traditional art. Contemporary art isn’t as supported. The artists in VAST are spreading beauty but need additional support to create sustainable livelihoods.”

Sangita Bokhim Rai, 29, Artist

Hailing from Sarpang, Bhutan, Sangita began exploring art at an early age.

“When I was a kid, my mom was very creative. She drew, did knitting, and often decorated, especially during festivals. I started copying her, and my own interests developed.”

In 2017, she enrolled in an art class at VAST. As she maintained a presence in the arts, Sangita also found a passion for human rights. In 2019, she joined the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), acting as a facilitator for child-focused programming on gender-based violence. However, when her work at the UNDP was finished, the canvas beckoned her back.

“After the UNDP, I began to fully focus on art. I practiced every day, focusing 100%. Through research, I studied lighting, composition…everything,” said Sangita.

After years of dedication, Sangita ventured into art entrepreneurship and is now co-owner of an art studio with fellow Bhutanese contemporary artist, Pem Lahm.

“I really like to focus on expressing unseen things. Emotions. I really like to play with colors because they affect human emotions,” noted Sangita. “For me, dark paintings can drain energy and make me feel clumsy. So, I try to work with vivid colors. That is why most of my paintings are bright.”

Her work also has notes of inspiration from Bhutan’s strong legacy of sustainability.

“I also love collecting natural elements. I see waste, like wood and bark at the sawmill and make creations from them, such as shelves or mirrors.”

And with a tip of the hat to Bhutanese traditional art, one of Sangita’s favorite subjects is none other than the Goddess White Tara, Mother of Wisdom, Purity, and Enlightenment.

“I love painting White Tara because the colors she is associated with bring me peace. But I paint her through my own imagination,” said Sangita.

Sangita respects the need for traditional arts, but also sees the potential in support for the contemporary arts, which she believes will contribute to a healthier society.

“If there is support and encouragement from local society and government, there will be a better future for the arts, and artists won’t have to struggle as much,” noted Sangita. “It might also help minimize drugs and violence. Arts help people stay away from negative addictions and activities, especially for the young people of Bhutan,” said Sangita.

Pem Lahm, 26, Artist

At the age of 10, Pem’s older brother, a senior member of the organization, introduced her to VAST. During the weekdays, she would go to school, anxiously anticipating the weekend when she would get to spend time with artists and her mentor, Asha Kama.

“I grew up in VAST. We would just hang out there, and Asha would buy us food. It was not only about art, painting, and skills; it was a way of living. There was always a social mission too, like volunteering,” said Pem.

VAST has programs such as “Make A Wish,” which gives Bhutanese elders the opportunity to visit Thumpu and take a pilgrimage to other important and sacred sites in Bhutan. They also have a “Build A House” program, which mobilizes resources to construct houses for the houseless. Among other impactful initiatives, they also have a “Rice Bank” project, which provides rice to rural farmers who would otherwise have to tend other farmers’ fields in exchange for sustenance. When rural farmers have access to their own rice, it provides them an economic opportunity to develop their fields, sell their produce, and financially support their families.

For Pem, exposure to the art scene in Pakistan, where she got a Bachelors in Fine Arts at the Beacon House National University, is a key aspect of her journey in contemporary art.

“In Pakistan, the contemporary arts are way ahead. For them, there are no rigid disciplines; their art is not just about painting and drawing. It breaks boundaries. It was quite inspiring. In Bhutan, we are taking good steps toward our own style of expansion in modern art.”

After Pem returned from college, she began to embody this expansion and explore beyond the confines of realism.

“I aspire to veer away from realistic works as much as possible. We are all born artists but we forget it along the way. I try to reconnect with the artist in me. In school, we learn realistic proportions which can kill your creativity. So I am hoping I can reconnect to my childhood creativity.”

Now, as co-owner of her own studio with fellow artist, Sangita Bokhim Rai, Pem works with mass-produced materials like synthetic bags, which her hands adorn in embroidered patterns that kindle childhood memories while challenging the very notion of mass production in the modern age.

“It feels like mass-produced items lose their personal touch nowadays. But these manufactured bags have a history. Growing up, I saw them carried around different places, and used for different things. So I try to connect these bags to home by embroidering them and giving them a feminine touch, because weaving is something women do in Bhutan. Weaving was once something personal, but many things are now mass-woven with machines.”

Mass production is not the only concept Pem’s art interrogates. With respect for her ancestors and traditions, her work also pushes the normative boundaries of traditional Bhutanese art.

“I was painting this Goddess White Tara, which takes a lot of patience, and the brush strokes are very fine. That made me want to let go. I found crayons and scribbled, and that felt very liberating. Now I am trying to explore crayons. With crayons, there is a technique where you color in layers and scratch the layers to create art with multiple sides to it.”

Whether it’s embroidering, painting self-portraits, or expanding upon traditional works, Pem’s approach is deeply inspired by the work of Jean-Michel Basquiat as well as that of her mentor, Asha Kama.

“Jean-Michel Basquiat inspires me a lot. His works are very childish but very powerful. He is very intuitive, and that’s something I want to become. Asha is very careful, and from him, I learn to be patient.”

Going forward, Pem is hopeful for the future of contemporary art in Bhutan, recognizing how far they have come, but also the need for greater national support that must occur for the vision to manifest.

“His Majesty and The Queen have been very supportive and have our back. But maybe a few years down the line we will have more policies that directly support contemporary museums, more artist grants and residencies, and more opportunities for artists. Right now, the focus is on culture and tradition, which is something that should be there, but we can go further and evolve too. We have to think of new ways to engage the youth, and art is one of the best things we can do for them,” said Pem.

Wang Rana Gurung, 29, Artist

Wang Rana Gurung never thought art was a realistic career opportunity growing up.

“We don’t have a contemporary art center. So as a kid, I thought there was no room for contemporary art in Bhutan. When I finished high school, that’s when I came to know about VAST, where I started learning art professionally.”

After studying contemporary art at VAST, Wang began to teach art classes, including in the Changang Central Prison of Bhutan.

“I was approached to give classes there. Inside the prison they already had traditional art classes, but the contemporary art classes were new for them. After seeing the success of the prison contemporary exhibitions and workshops, the work expanded to the juvenile detention center,” noted Wang.

Today, Wang operates a studio he co-owns with fellow Bhutanese contemporary artists. His approach to contemporary art is one that respects the unique signature that artists bring to their work.

“Traditional artists are not allowed to sign their name because that is not their art; it is replication of what old masters have done. In modern art, there is a sense of ownership, and you are proud because it is your work.”

He also recognized that as an artist, he can use his platform to inspire change.

“I don’t want to paint just to decorate. I prefer to communicate a strong message. Some of my work interrogates economic disparities in Bhutan and how the wealth gap was especially apparent during the COVID-19 lockdown. I want to help bring change. When my work is its own form of activism, I feel like my art is doing its job.”

Wang draws inspiration from two international artists and one other person close to him.

“The first is Picasso. I love how he experimented with his style. The next inspiration is Asha Kama, the Founder of VAST Bhutan. He is someone who trained in both traditional and contemporary arts. It interests me how combined the two to create his own style. And third is my mom. When I started my art journey, she was the one supporting me. There was the trust and belief, and she encouraged me.”

On the side of teaching and painting, Wang also co-created the Thimphu Comic Studio, a first of its kind in Bhutan.

“We started the Thimphu Comic Studio and worked on comic book projects. At first, these were about mythical superheroes, but now we are working on stories about climate change, health, and conservation.”

Wang and his colleagues are planning to open the comic studio to the Kingdom’s youth through workshops that teach them how to create their own comics.

“Artists in Bhutan are multidimensional. If you are an artist in Bhutan, it is hard to survive just doing one thing. Artists do commission pieces, murals, illustrations, children’s books, comics, sculptures, and other forms of art. We are going through an economic change. We have a big market, but we need additional support for the different dimensions of art, and the patience to go through the progress.”

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