Guru Dragpo
Unknown Artist
18th century
Medium
Distemper on cotton
Dimensions
Image: 24 in. × 17 1/2 in. (61 × 44.5 cm) Framed: 33 1/16 × 25 13/16 in. (84 × 65.5 cm)
Classification
Paintings
Culture
Tibet
Department
Asian Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Purchase, Friends of Asian Art Gifts, 2015
Accession Number
2015.269
Tags
Art Historical Context
This striking 18th-century Tibetan painting portrays Guru Dragpo, a wrathful manifestation of a revered Buddhist teacher, rendered in vivid distemper on cotton. Created in Tibet, the work belongs to the tradition of thangka painting, which served both as devotional objects and meditative aids. The compact format—measuring just 24 by 17½ inches—allowed these images to be rolled and carried between monasteries or used in personal shrines, reflecting the portable nature of Tibetan Buddhist practice during this period. The composition draws on rich iconographic elements visible in the tags: skull...