Memorializing Freedom In Tibet: New Work By Danny Conant

Religious symbolism, alternative processes and beautiful imagery – Danny Conant’s new show has it all. Danny shared some thoughts below on her new series, Once Tibetan, The Wheel Turns. The series is on exhibit at MEG through June 16, 2013.

Buddha of The Rock  (c) Danny Conant

Your new show features work from Tibet. When were the images captured? I’ve traveled to Tibet five times and the images in this show were taken during my fifth trip in 2011. They were captured in Eastern Tibet, which is the home of the Kham Minority.

The photographs reflect religious symbols and imagery. Why did you focus on religious expression? I was inspired by Ai Weiwei’s exhibition  at the Hirshhorn Museum in Washington, D.C.  Weiwei is a Chinese activist artist whose work spoke of the lack of freedom.  For Tibetans, there is a serious lack of freedom as the Chinese try to destroy their culture. Tibetans are very spiritual and their religious symbols are very important to them. To me, these symbols signify hope for the continuance of the Tibetan culture and the future of the people.

Wheel Of Mercy  (c) Danny Conant

Once TIbetan, The Wheel Turns @ Multiple Exposures Gallery

While you started with your photographs as your base, you used an alternative process to create one-of-a-kind pieces of art for the show. Would you describe your process?  I begin by printing my images on a special film using archival pigment inks. Next, I prepare a wooden panel of birch by sometimes coating it with encaustic gesso or applying pastels or just sanding and applying the image to let the wood grain show through.  The panel is the coated with a gelatinous sauce and the film placed emulsion side down and rolled with a brayer. The film is lifted off and the inks remain. Then many coats of an encaustic medium, basically hot wax, is brushed on and colored wax and or an oil stick are added.

I chose to use an encaustic medium on the photographs because it reminds me of the yak butter that is used in so many ways by Tibetans. Yak butter is used to make small images for offerings in the monasteries, to fuel lamps, for food, and as a coating on the nomad’s tents for rain protection.

Please join Danny and the rest of Multiple Exposures Gallery for an opening reception on Sunday, May 19th from 2pm-4pm at MEG (Studio 312, Torpedo Factory Arts Center, Alexandria, VA).