Rossi & Rossi is thrilled to announce Chitra-Kala: Weaving Awareness through Time, a solo exhibition on the work of Tibetan American artist Tenzing Rigdol (b. 1982). Derived from the Sanskrit words Chitra (light or awareness) and Kala (time or emptiness), the exhibition’s title Chitra-Kala translates to ‘art’. Reflecting a deep philosophical framework rooted in Eastern thought, it also speaks to the interplay between awareness and the passage of time.
Opening on 22 March 2025, the presentation, which features a new body of paintings and drawings, marks the artist’s fifth solo exhibition with the gallery. It follows his large-scale 2024 Met commission Biography of a Thought – – a site-specific installation of paintings and carpets, which was juxtaposed with traditional Himalayan art and ritual objects in the museum’s exhibition Mandalas: Mapping the Buddhist Art of Tibet.
Conceived alongside Biography of a Thought, the artist’s new works on view – inspired by the Buddhist notion that ‘life is an ocean of suffering’ – delve into the interconnected realms of thought, emotion and awareness. In them, Rigdol contemplates humanity’s tendency to cling to the turbulent currents of thoughts and emotions. These unprocessed, untamed memories linger as imprints in the mind, often obstructing inner peace. Chitra-Kala: Weaving Awareness through Time is therefore an invitation to find balance in one’s mind, to observe without the disturbance of thought and to exist in a state of melodic tranquillity.
Images of waves and clouds recur throughout these works, serving as the backdrop of each panel or even becoming the subject of some of them. For Rigdol, these motifs symbolise the relentless flow of thoughts and emotions within the mind. Painted with intricate gradients achieved through meticulous stippling brushwork, the works embody the artist’s serene state of mind and rhythmic breath – a peacefulness Rigdol aspires to share with the audience. Departing from the compositional complexity of his earlier paintings, this body of work embraces simplicity, as it achieves striking directness and conceptual clarity. Each of the twenty works on view serves as a meditation on the essence of thought, which is explored with both precision and poetic sensitivity.
In his practice, Rigdol also recontextualises motifs, styles and ideas from classical Himalayan art, infusing them with contemporary relevance. In the drawings on paper titled Self Tune 1 (2022) and Self Tune 2 (2024), the artist presents an image of a lute, its neck replaced by a human hand. This symbol of self-transformation suggests the ability to reshape and redefine oneself, much like a musician tunes an instrument to achieve harmony. The hand, a universal tool of creation, becomes a metaphor for the individual’s capacity to navigate and alter their own existence. Meanwhile, in The Four States of Awareness (2023), Rigdol depicts four slender, winged eyes hovering playfully above turbulent waves. These ethereal organs, detached yet observant, emphasise the fleetingness of thoughts and the impermanence of the mind’s eye above the constant waves of emotions. Through these works, Rigdol bridges the ancient and the modern, inviting viewers to reflect on timeless themes of self-awareness, transformation and the ephemeral quality of human experience.
Chitra-Kala: Weaving Awareness through Time is an exploration of the human condition. Viewers are invited to engage with their own inner landscapes and find harmony amidst life’s ceaseless currents.
