Traditional Tibetan Pigments

by Ngawang Jigme

Tibetan mineral and plant pigment production technology and products have a history of thousands of years. Colors are extracted from various local minerals and plants. Artworks and utensils painted with mineral or plant pigments can be seen everywhere in Tibet， including thangkas， murals， traditional architecture， and furniture. And the required special mining， production， and processing skills are renowned worldwide.

Thangka paintings， known for rich content and color， are considered encyclopedias of Tibetan culture. Closely tied to thangka， Tibetan mineral and plant pigments have been important exports from the region across history and well known throughout China as well as foreign countries. The production technology related to Tibetan pigments has been inscribed onto the national intangible cultural heritage list alongside thangka painting.

Over thousands of years， countless thangka works from every corner of Tibet were painted with fine and abundant mineral and plant pigments. Even after lengthy exposure to wind and sun， many paintings look as bright as the day they were completed.

Since the middle of last century， various factors including the emergence of chemical pigments have pushed Tibetan mineral and plant pigment production technology to the brink of extinction.

The protection of Tibets unique techniques represented by the processing and extraction methods of Tibetan blue and green pigments has become a top priority of rescue work for Tibetan pigments.

Many other unique skills have been passed down across generations including treatment and classification methods for mineral pigments and extraction and production methods for plant pigments.

At the end of last century， Tibet University launched a special investigation and rescue program for Tibetan mineral and plant pigments. The team found several elderly craftsmen well versed in traditional Tibetan pigment production and processing skills.

After years of efforts， more than a dozen traditional mineral and plant pigments have been rescued. New varieties have been developed based on the traditional ones. Now， artists can choose from nearly 50 varieties.

The raw materials powering the pigments all come from the natural minerals and plants found on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau or neighboring regions.

Many techniques used to produce the pigments have been used for hundreds of years such as mineral selecting， rinsing， wet and dry grinding， separation， and sun drying. Many detailed procedures require lengthy practice and robust accumulation of experience.

These pigments have gradually been regarded as high-end pigments in modern paintings， welcomed by artists for their natural sources， bright colors， and sense of heaviness， not to mention the stable strokes that last centuries.

Tibetan mineral and plant pigments are used not only in restoration of historical sites and cultural relics and painting of traditional thangkas and murals， but also in Tibetan-style buildings， furniture， and Chinese ink painting. The colors are even seeing promising prospects in the new day of contemporary art.