Lambeth community invited to meet the Buddhas
This week an extraordinary free exhibition of local art from Lambeth and Buddhist art from the Himalayas is being exhibited. Uniquely, the exhibition includes a contemporary art response from local artists in Lambeth displayed alongside pieces from the British Council Collection.
It is a chance for local people to come and meet us and enjoy the rich Tibetan tradition and its contemporary equivalent.
The exhibition features more than 50 separate items including gilded statues, ritual ornaments and embroidered scroll paintings called Thangkas. The largest Thangka stretches more than 16 feet from bottom to top, while the smallest sculpture measures just 4in tall. The oldest piece in the exhibition is a rare 3rd century stone statue of the Buddha, carved in the ancient kingdom of Gandhara – part of modern-day Pakistan and Afghanistan.
The Buddhist collection was previously displayed at the European Parliament in Brussels, in honour of the 2008 European Year of Intercultural Dialogue. First assembled in 2001, the collection has also been shown in Germany, Spain, Finland, Belgium, Hungary and Poland.
The Exhibition is free and at The Spring, 100 Vauxhall Walk, SE11 5EL and runs from 28th May to 3rd June 2012. A complementary programme of tours, talks and films are also happening daily – these are either free or £7.
See full details www.spaceforart.org.uk. All are very welcome to come and visit.