“As I sat looking at the art installation and the snowy peaks in the background, a deep sense of beauty, time, and our (in) significance dawned like the sun rising, an inevitable and powerful truth and reminder not to ‘waste time’ and to leave a meaningful and beneficial legacy for all beings and the planet, whenever and wherever possible.” —Adele Tomlin
“Now the time has come when the earth is scowling at us; the time has come when the earth is giving up on us. The earth is about to treat us badly and give up on us. If she gives up on us, where can we live? …. The sentient beings living on the earth and the elements of the natural world need to join their hands together—the earth must not give up on sentient beings, and sentient beings must not give up on the earth. Each needs to grasp the other’s hand.” —17th Gyalwang Karmapa
On 3rd August, I was fortunate to visit the newly opened landscape art exhibition, SāLadakh in the high peaks Leh, Ladakh at Disko Valley. Set in a valley surrounded by the desert snow mountains of Ladakh with the white Shanti stupa visible, it was a magnificent and thought-provoking feast for the eyes and soul. The installation works are visible during the day and video and light installations during the night creating a new experiential exhibition experience. There is a daily schedule with workshops and discussions with some of the artists here.
SaLadakh which is being held from 1st-23rd August 2023, is named after the land, sa means soil/land in Ladakhi (and Tibetan) language, and is South Asia’s highest ever contemporary land art group exhibition at 3600m, which brings together contemporary Ladakhi, international and Indian artists as well as a collective of Ladakhi organizations focuses on the following themes, hard labour, environmental pollution, local identity, sustainable ways of living, and climate change and the significance of mountain regions and traditions for the 21st Century. This year, the heat in Ladakh felt more intense and hotter than ever, almost unbearably so from 12 to 4pm. Thus, never has such an artistic reflection on the impact of humans on the environment, climate and traditional culture in Ladakh been more timely. In this review I consider each art installation with some information about the artist.
Overall, the exhibit left me with an overall feeling of optimism that within the bleak, dry desert landscape of human greed, selfishness and ignorance, the beauty and resilience of 50 million year old mountains, blue skies with white misty clouds, and of compassionate, intelligent humans trying to resist the pollution and environmental catastrophe reeked by the mass of humans on local cultures, traditions and the environment as a result of their endless consumption, travel and desires. A sense of never giving up and using the beauty of the landscape and this precious planet to be the base/sā of that hope for the world and for the children. To end, I share the most stunning and natural landscape art of all, a view from above of the 50 million year old mountain ranges of the Himalayan Ladakh. Nature is indeed the most genius, powerful and talented creator of all! As the Tibetan Buddhist environmentalist, 17th Karmapa recently said, ‘the earth is scowling at us, so we must do all we can to appease, care and love it for ourselves and all beings who rely on the earth for sustenance, life and beauty.
Music? Top of the World by The Carpenters, You Don’t Own Me by Dusty Springfield, for the sweltering heat of the Ladakh summer, A Hard Rain’s Gonna Fall by Bob Dylan, Feels Like Summer by Childish Gambino and for the environmental waste and pollution, Where Do the Children Play by Cat Stevens.
Written and photographed by Adele Tomlin (on a simple Android mobile phone camera), 5th August 2023.
The Exhibition location- Disko Valley, Leh, Ladakh
The location for this unusual exhibition is in Disko Valley, on the outskirts of the centre of Leh town, near a mountain bike park that was built recently and the white Shanti Stupa.
Sacred Place by Anayat Ali
Anayat’s work deals with the balance of the ecology and development and the importance of ‘stone-balancing’ within that not reminding us all of the importance of stones in our lives but also in providing much-needed boundaries from the cold, wind and dangers. It reminded me of the Mani mantra stone constructions one finds all over places of Himalayan and Tibetan Buddhist culture.
Beyul: Broken Mirrors by Gurmet Kungyam and exclusive Q&A with the artist
Tsering Gurmet Kungyam is a Ladakhi artist who lives and works in Leh. He is a renowned sculptor who was commissioned by the Drugpa Kagyu head in Ladakh to create a statue of the Ladakhi King, Senge Namgyal. His magnificent work of broken mirrors explores the theme of the hidden lands (beyul), which are said to be inhabited by fairies, dwarfs and supernatural unseen creatures who protect these areas of great beauty. His work embodies the idea of a hidden protected land, untouched by the onslaught of climate change.
Seeing these icy blue colours, reflecting the blue sky and white clouds, was like an oasis indeed in the dry, dusty desert heat and mountains of Ladakh. In the UK, where I am from, broken mirrors are seen superstitiously like bad luck and so it also evoked a sense of the ominous future for these hidden lands if humans continue to plunder the environment and resources. It is said in Tibetan Buddhist culture for example, that the local spirits that inhabit these places will become angry with humans if they continue to pollute the environment, which leads nicely onto the next installation.
Gurmet’s online biography states that:
“Gyurmet holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree specializing in Sculpture and a Master of Fine Arts degree. Since 2017, Gyurmet has been working as a sculptor, passionately pursuing his artistic vision and bringing life to the inanimate. He aspires to leave an indelible mark on the art world, inspiring viewers and exploring the profound connections between humanity and art through his sculptures, installations, calligraphy, photography, and drawings. His captivating artworks have found a place in prominent collections, public installations and galleries. Gyurmet has received numerous awards and honours, including the All India Young Artist Scholarship in Visual Art and special felicitations at the Harbin International Snow Sculpture Competition and the Ladakh sPal-rNam-Duston event. He has also been appointed as the Honorary Ambassador for Art and Life by SAVE Changthang.”
I managed to ask Gurmet a few questions about this work online. In particular, I wondered about his own cultural background and beliefs regarding the hidden lands (be-yul) and the unseen spirits that inhabit them:
Q: Have you ever visited a hidden land (Be-yul) yourself?
Q: As a child were you taught about the hidden protectors and spirits in the environment and mountains? Are you a Buddhist?
Q: Why ‘Broken’ Mirrors? Is that a comment on the ‘broken-ness’ of the environment caused by humans?
What do you see as the role of art, if anything, in raising awareness about environmental issues?
The role of art in this art work is to remember all such stories which are the main sources of living and the respect to the environment and the connection with them. I used to hear so many interesting stories of my valley. Such as when I was a child. We never used to pee/ urinate or make dirty the water sources/channels. They used to say that if we make them dirty then we will have very dangerous pimples. So, in such a way the water channels used to be very clean and we can drink water from anywhere. But nowadays its all finished . We can’t drink water. Such things are very important. In that way, I want keep such stories alive via my art work.
Kicker of Plastics by Tundup Gyatso
@gyatsorangjung
Gyatso’s installation deals with the theme of plastics pollution by the tourist industry and the need to stop wasting so much plastic before it is too late.
You Don’t Own Me – Vibha Galhotra
Vibha Galhotra’s artwork is highly visible from afar, at first one sees clothes lying on the hillside, almost as if left out to dry in the baking desert sun. As one approaches closer, the words created by the clothes become visible: ‘You Don’t Own Me’, which Galhotra describes as a ‘potent phrase’ signifying the struggle against oppression and the longing for liberation. An interesting combination of the artificial, human-made clothes (made from the land’s materials) against a backdrop of nature, unowned and uncontrolled despite human attempts to do so. Humans need clothes to wear, yet the mountains and skies and rivers are naked in their simplicity and beauty.
Vanishing Footprints – Tundup Churpon
On first seeing this installation it was not immediately obvious it was an artwork. The colour of the hooves merged with the mountain sand and only on closer sight one can see they were animals hooves, laid out like a track. Tundup explains that they refer to a self-sufficient, yet vanishing way of life in Ladakh:
“Sheep and goat were once an integral part of life in Ladakh. They provided wool and pashmina that was used for weaving as well as for trade. They also provided the staples of a Ladakhi diet – milk that was turned into butter, cheese and yogurt. Tundup remembers as a young child grazing livestock with his grandfather in the high pastures surrounding his village, setting out at dawn and returning as the sun set. Now that way of life is gradually disappearing. As people move away from their villages and turn to new professions, they have left self-sufficiency behind. Tundup finds that to now witness livestock he has to travel far, to distant places in Changthang. His work alludes to these changes in livestock patterns. The repetitive pattern of the imprint of a goat’s footprint, once visible on small mountain paths or along village roads, has gradually blurred until it has but almost vanished. And with it a way of life that once echoed in these mountains.
River of Sweat – Anshu Singh
Ashnu Singh’s piece is symbolic of hard labour, marhinalised communities and the impact of that on the local people, workers and environment. An Indian artist, Singh literally weaves a landscape of brightly-coloured cloth into a river cascading down the mountain rocks, in this case, a ‘river of blood, sweat and tears’.
Untitled – Skarma Sonam Tashi
Skarma Sonam Tashi’s work reminded me a little of the same design of the grand Potala Palace in Lhasa, Tibet. His work explores the importance of glaciers to villages in the mountainous region and how the melting of the glaciers caused by climate change is dangerous for the local communities and the planet as a whole. Using a rock-face to symbolise a melting glacier and the danger it poses to the human-made homes below. Another reminder of our fragility as beings living on the planet and its natural forces which threaten to overwhelm us all if we do not look after and care for it properly.
Walking on the roof of hell – Birender Yadav
Birender Yadav’s installation, provocatively titled Walking On the Roof Of Hell addresses the issue of manual labourers and farmers for communities, and the dangerous and lethal working conditions for those who work in brick kilns. Using wooden chappals (sandals) to show how the workers end up with feet like bricks due to the heat there. A reminder of how as humans we often forget the workers who bring the food, houses, necessities and desires to us all on a daily basis and the sufferings they go through to earn their ‘daily bread’.
Echoes of the Coral Brain – Sagardeep Singh
Sagardeep Singh’s work of white stones to represent the corals of the ocean, that may have been there before, stood out among the dry, dusty desert brown hills. A patterned maze of nature’s waves, nature is an artist, as they say.
What if we prayed to the mountains? – Arunima Dazess Wangchuk
For a Fifty Million Years by Raki Nikahetiya
The final installation on the trail of the exhibit was both a stunning location and concept of Indian artist, Raki Nikahetiya. Set atop a hill alone facing the highest snow mountain peaks in Ladakh and the white Shanti Stupa, the artist’s work ‘For a Fifty Million Years’ was made of ‘rammed earth’, mirroring the geological forces and materials that brought together the surrounding fifty million year old mountain range of collided and rammed earth, and to reflect on ‘deep time’ and the legacy we leave in the future. As I sat looking at the art installation and the snowy peaks in the background, a deep sense of beauty, time, and our (in) significance dawned like the sun rising, an inevitable and powerful truth and reminder not to ‘waste time’ and to leave a meaningful and beneficial legacy for all beings and the planet, whenever and wherever possible.
So finishing this review where it began, I leave you with images I took of the most incredible of all ‘landscape’ natural art, the Himalayan peaks of Ladakh seen from a plane.
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