The Art of Terris Nguyen Temple

All of my Tibetan teachers, both artistic and spiritual, planted in me a respect for Buddhism, giving me the enthusiasm and joy to sit, day after day, for decades, lost in  creating art. After all these yearsI still feel as if I am riding a wave and every instant is one of discovery and excitement. I imagine that the early explorers felt this way.

There is something within ancient Buddhist wisdom that we have lost sight of in our modern world. It is the quality which brings us closer to nature and our true inner contentment. Through painting I enjoy the best of  these worlds by including aspects of a this rich tradition with my tradional and contemporary works. 

Techniques and Materials

Mineral colors and botanical dyes held a place within the ancient healing arts. Today color therapy has become popular. Learning the traditional practices of grinding stone colors connected me with both possibilities. The viewer of my works also can enjoy a positive healing experience. I started working with these materials in the 1960's and have found it impossible to want to use commercial colors. I use sheer silk, also which feels like painting on air. Painting birds, what better element than air to inspire me. Silk and mineral pigments, with proper care, can last centuries. The Main colors are cinnabar, orpiment, malachite, azurite, red lead, and mineral white. Earth colors I also use. Botanical's include: lac, indigo and the Himalayan leaf known as shung kan.

My good fortune is having worked the last eighteen years for His Holiness the 17th Karmapa and Tsurphu Monastery. 

Now we are  coordinating a new Tsurphu project, the Tsechur Drabje, a 40 mt. ceremonial appplique, the companion piece of the Karma Gadri Thangka.

Thongdrol", the feature documentary about making the giant appliqué thangkas in Tibet, and the Karma Gadri School of painting with Living Films, Chiang Mai is ongoing. (See the Film section) 

My paintings are influenced by Tibet's great teachers and my love of nature. The tantric art of Tibet has been a life long study, and it just keeps getting more interesting.