Murals of Tibet: Ancient Treasures Revealed

After half a dozen expeditions to Tibet in the past decade, visiting 16 sites, thousands of miles apart, Thomas Laird, author, photographer, and journalist, has assembled the only collection of 'life size resolution' images of more than 250 Tibetan murals. In this talk, Laird will discuss where, when, and how these Tibetan murals were painted, as well as essential Tibetan ideas about what the murals mean. Many of the murals featured in Laird’s talk have never before been seen outside of Tibet. Thousands of murals were painted in temples and monasteries all across the Tibetan Plateau. During the past thousand years few have survived and until now few of them have been seen or described, as good photographs of them are non-existent. The large size of the murals (up to 10 x 30 feet), the dark rooms, and the limitations of traditional photography have kept these treasures out of the world's eye. 

Laird lived for thirty five years in the Himalayas and is author of the book The Story of Tibet: Conversations with the Dalai Lama and a forthcoming book, Murals of Tibet, to be published by TASCHEN in 2014.

Bing Theater | $10 general admission; $5 LACMA members; free for SAAC members and students with ID | Tickets: 323 857-6010 or purchase online.

Sponsored by the Southern Asian Art Council.

Image: Mural of Green Tara, Kumbum, Gyantse, Tibet, circa 1415 BCE. Copyright 2013, Thomas Laird.