Page 81 - Bonhams IMages of Devotion, Hong Kong Nov 30 2022
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As Rhie explains, “The convergence of politics, religion, and art became more
           pronounced and internationally consequential... as Tibet and Tibetan Buddhism
           become enfolded into the imperial strategy of the early Qing emperors of Manchu
           China... By the early eighteenth century Emperor Kangxi (r. 1662-1722), second
           ruler of the Manchu Qing dynasty (1644-1911), had founded a number of major
           Buddhist monasteries in Inner Mongolia as part of his strategy to consolidate Qing
           power in the northern and western border regions of the empire. In the second
           half of the eighteenth century this effective strategy was extended, invigorated,
           modified, and solidified by his grandson, the fourth ruler, Emperor Qianlong (r.
           1735-95). Though these two long-lived emperors appear to have personally
           embraced the Tibetan form of Buddhism, their actions also were strongly
           motivated by the politics of empire building and the desire to control the feared
           Mongol clans.” (Thurman & Rhie, A Shrine for Tibet, 2009, pp. 29-30)

           The present triad borrows from the Zanabazar school. Ushering in a period of
           artistic renewal in Mongolia, Bogdo Gegen Zanabazar (1635–1723) was a chosen
           leader descended from Chinggis Khan, an incarnate lama, and a true Renaissance
           man. He was both the most powerful political and religious figure among the
           independent Khalkha Mongols—instrumental in their decision to give allegiance
           to the Manchu Qing in 1691—and a visionary artist who created a workshop of
           supreme sophistication. Before establishing his workshop, Zanabazar sought
           religious training in Tibet from both the Fifth Dalai Lama at the Potala, and the
           Panchen Lama at Tashi Lhunpo, and after visiting various monasteries in the Tsang
           region, he brought back skilled craftsmen on his return to Mongolia. With the
           techniques that he mastered, he honed one of the most sublime sculptural styles
           of the time—an eclectic synthesis of Indo-Nepalese sensuality, Tibetan power, and
           Chinese precision, infused with his own unique inventiveness.







































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