TIBET OUTSIDE TIBET: A Photographer's Journey in Tibet's Borderlands by Luke Duggleby
This exhibition tells stories of Tibet’s borderlands in the provinces of Sichuan, Yunnan, and the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) through the lens of English photographer Luke Duggleby. They are present-day stories of pilgrimage, faith, and ways of life in these remote areas. The following themes are explored:
PILGRIMAGE
Pilgrimage has a special meaning in Tibetan Buddhism; the words for pilgrimage in Tibetan itself mean to “go around or encounter a holy place or being” (nékor or néjel). Luke’s photographs let us experience modern Tibetan pilgrimages to Kawa Karpo, the third most sacred mountain range that is a natural border between Yunnan and the Tibetan plateau. Kawa Karpo has only been open to foreigners since 1996. Here pilgrims take long journeys around the mountain range, climb through a Bardo hole (representing going through death and rebirth) and circumambulate sacred waterfalls (representing the cleansing of one’s spirit to gain merits).
TIBETAN CATHOLICS
Catholicism exists in the Tibetan borderlands, especially at Cizhong 茨中 in Yunnan, in the late 19th century by product of French missionaries. Though many churches are destroyed by local conflicts and during the Cultural Revolution, a few are left in Yunnan province and have largely members who are Tibetan and of the Naxi 纳西 minorities.
ANCIENT SALT TERRACES
Yanjing 盐井 or Tsakalho in Tibetan is once an important Tibetan trading town between Lijiang 丽江 in northwestern Yunnan and Lhasa in Tibet. Its unique geography and relationship with the Mekong produce brine (salt water) deep into the ground. The waters are hoisted up from the well, poured onto the clay fields and let dry to produce salt highly prized in the area. The salt terraces create spectacular architectural view of the mountains and rivers in different currents and seasons.
CATERPILLAR FUNGUS COLLECTORS
Tibetan calls caterpillar fungus “winter worm, summer grass” because the caterpillar is infected with the fungus that mummifies and turns it into plant-like body, which is then collected in the early summer. Caterpillar fungus is believed to contain many medicinal properties, is highly prized in traditional Tibetan and Chinese medicine, and is an important source for cash income for the locals.
Others include stories of Tibetan nuns and their matchless devotion to Buddhism and nomads who migrate seasonally through beautiful landscapes of Tibet’s borderlands. These photographs show the reality of lives in this region that are much more complex than the boundaries drawn by modern cartography.
In 2006 Luke won First Prize in the category of Mountain Environment from the Banff Centre of Mountain Culture and Environment, Canada. In 2009 Luke collaborated with Italian anthropologist Gionvanni Da Col in the publication Il Lato Invisibile del Paradiso: Pellegrinaggi ai confini del Tibet (Pilgrimages to the Borders of Tibet).
Luke first ventured to the region where these photographs were taken in 1999. Back then, most of the places in this remote area of northwest Yunnan province were off-limits to foreigners. But over the years he has returned to document the people and the cultures that have totally captivated him for over a decade.
Signed prints of a selection of Luke's photographs (shown left) from TIBET OUTSIDE TIBET are available at Serindia Gallery. Visit the gallery or contact: serindiagallery@gmail.com.
