NATASHA KUMAR
C h a r i k a ( J o u r n ey s ) N ew C o l l e c t i o n – N ove m b e r 2 0 2 0
Natasha Kumar C h a r i k a ( J o u r n ey s ) N ove m b e r 2 0 2 0
Railings Gallery is delighted to be virtually showcasing Natasha Kumar’s latest collection of hand-drawn silkscreen prints
R A I L I N G S G A L L E RY LONDON
In line with Government guidance, the gallery will be closed until 3rd December,
however we will be on hand to assist clients with enquiries about artworks. Our framing workshop will remain fully operational. Contact us Mondays to Fridays by calling 020 7935 1114 or email us at info@railings-gallery.com
Railings Gallery & Framing, 5 New Cavendish Street, London W1G 8UT 020 7935 1114 info@railings-gallery.com www.railings-gallery.com
Introduction
“I have seen a celestial paradise on a clear night. I saw it from the roof of the world.
And in the morning, among sublime peaks that rose from mist-filled valleys I watched monks play cricket and pray for enlightenment.” Natahsa Kumar, Tawang, Arunachal Pradesh, 2007
Natasha Kumar’s latest collection of works, Charika (Journey), was born of that moment in 2007, in the Indian Himalaya. Tawang or Galden Namgey Lhatse, the world’s second largest Buddhist monastery, translates as celestial paradise on a clear night. Close to the contentious, high border of Arunachal Pradesh where China and India collide, it is where the Dalai Lama found refuge, fleeing the Communist occupation of Tibet in 1959. But it was not the drama of the setting, nor the cricket itself, that provided Natasha with her inspiration. For all their maroon robes and yak-wool shawls the novice monks risking their ball to the abyss with every boundary could have been village boys. What made them different, what caught Natasha’s imagination to become the works’ point of departure was their journey; the path to enlightenment.
Would they find it? How would they know? What would enlightenment feel like? Natasha’s work explores those questions, each image an imagined snapshot on the journey, inflected through elements integral to Buddhist art, everyday life in the monastery, and its monks. Where to begin? With a prayer for the swift fulfilment of all wishes, a blessing for the young monk pursuing his destiny in the Pali [sacred text] series. Accompanying him is his patient tulku, an enlightened being who chooses to continue to reincarnate in order to help others achieve enlightenment.
Prayer flags
The motif of the padma [lotus flower] series, floating above the murky waters of material attachment and physical desire, reminds our monk of his ultimate goal. A background of yellow to the lotus symbolises the meditation to transform pride into simplicity; of green, the transformation of envy into accomplishment. But there are other journeys that our travelling monk motif takes us on, real but no less spiritual. In the kunkuma [saffron] series, the monks’ shadows fall on a background of the cloth that wrapped the sacred Buddhist texts smuggled out of Tibet, after the Dalai Lama’s flight. His own journey to Tawang, over the Himalaya, leading the way for others, is recalled through the seng ge [snow lion] series that adopts his personal insignia, a celestial snow lion with glowing yellow eyes, and tiny white claws. Political struggle continues on the high Tibetan plateau. With the Third Pole series, Natasha’s monks head into the fluid confusion of an uncertain geopolitical future. Climate crisis is melting the area’s glaciers, and China is damming the reservoir of fresh water shared across Asia, the largest outside the polar regions. On this journey, we share their destiny.
NATASHA KUMAR
Charika # Mumen, Amethyst Series Hand-drawn silkscreen print Image Size: 45.0 x 62.5 cms Edition of 5 £850.00 Price unframed - contact us for framing options
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NATASHA KUMAR
Charika # Kunkuma, Saffron Series Hand-drawn silkscreen print Image Size: 45.0 x 62.5 cms Edition of 10 £850.00 Price unframed - contact us for framing options
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NATASHA KUMAR
Charika # Yarlung Tsangpo, River Series Hand-drawn silkscreen print Image size: 45.0 x 62.5 cms Edition of 10 ÂŁ850.00 Price unframed - contact us for framing options
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NATASHA KUMAR
Charika # Padma, Lotus Flower, Series I Hand-drawn silkscreen print with pink glitter Image Size: 45.0 x 62.5 cms Edition of 10 ÂŁ900.00 Price unframed - contact us for framing options
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NATASHA KUMAR
Charika # Padma, Lotus Flower, Series II Hand-drawn silkscreen print with pink glitter Image Size: 45.0 x 62.5 cms Edition of 10 ÂŁ900.00 Price unframed - contact us for framing options
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NATASHA KUMAR
Charika # Third Pole Series Hand-drawn silkscreen print Image Size: 45.0 x 62.5 cms Edition of 10 £900.00 Price unframed - contact us for framing options
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NATASHA KUMAR
Charika # Seng ge, Snow Lion, Series I Hand-drawn silkscreen print with 22ct Gold Image Size: 45.0 x 62.5 cms Edition of 10 £950.00 Price unframed - contact us for framing options
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NATASHA KUMAR
Charika # Seng ge, Snow Lion, Series II Hand-drawn silkscreen print with 22ct Gold Image Size: 45.0 x 62.5 cms Edition of 6 £1,000.00 Price unframed - contact us for framing options
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NATASHA KUMAR
Charika # Lungta Prayer Flag, Series I Hand-drawn silkscreen print with 22ct Gold Image Size: 45.0 x 62.5 cms Edition of 10 £950.00 Price unframed - contact us for framing options
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NATASHA KUMAR
Charika # Lungta Prayer Flag, Series II Hand-drawn silkscreen print with 22ct Gold Image Size: 45.0 x 62.5 cms Edition of 10 £950.00 Price unframed - contact us for framing options
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NATASHA KUMAR
Charika # Lungta Prayer Flag, Series III Hand-drawn silkscreen print Image Size: 45.0 x 62.5 cms Edition of 5 £900.00 Price unframed - contact us for framing options
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R A I L I N G S G A L L E RY LONDON
Natasha Kumar’s artworks are available to order unframed or framed. We offer a bespoke framing service in-house, please contact us for details The prices quoted in this catalogue are for unframed artworks and are inclusive of VAT (UK Sales Tax). . The gallery is temporarily closed in line with Government guidance, but we are on hand to assist clients with enquiries about acquiring
artworks and framing orders, collections & deliveries. Call us on 020 7 935 1114 or email us at info@railings-gallery.com Monday – Fridays: 10am-5pm
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RAILINGS GALLERY LONDON