Step into the gallery and be amazed by Bhutan’s stunning mountains and peaceful nomadic life. Karma Thinley Dorji’s solo exhibition, “Patience,” showcases both the beauty of the Himalayas and changes in living conditions and climate over the past 15 years in the mountains. Dorji’s photos mix breathtaking landscapes with portraits of the local people, highlighting how their timeless society is affected by the rapidly changing world.
As you enter the gallery, you see big, clear pictures on the walls. Each picture shows a place where nature is very important, and people live peacefully with the land.
The first section of the exhibition is dedicated to the awe-inspiring mountains of Bhutan. Towering peaks, some shrouded in mist and others kissed by the first light of dawn, stretch across vast canvases.
One piece, in particular, stands out—a panoramic collage view of the mountains ranging from western to central Bhutan. The collage includes the majestic Jomolhari and Masagang to Gangkhar Phuensum.
And the brains behind the spectacular pictures is 47-year-old Karma Thinley Dorji. Karma is a mountain enthusiast and a photographer. He began exploring trekking and mountaineering while studying at Yangchenphu Higher Secondary School.
“The Snowman Trek 2 that I did started in Paro and ended in Bumthang. That took me almost 29 days. I was very lucky to have very good weather and a very good team. Every time I need to go to the mountains, I need to make a lot of arrangements. Every time I am in the mountains and I want to take a picture, it’s about patience; I need to take 20 or 30 shots to get one perfect click. Whenever the weather is bad, I have to wait for it to get clear. Every time I cross a pass, I have to pray to my deities thanking them and then I thought everything has been about patience for my entire 15-year journey and I felt yes, maybe patience is the right title for this exhibition.”
He recalls starting without proper hiking shoes or equipment to Paro via Phajoding in one and a half days, but these early adventures sparked his deep passion for hiking and long treks.
Soon after, he founded Trekkers 360°, a trekking community with 23 members. The community also has a few doctors as well who help provide basic health checkups to highlanders. The community also donates books to schools in the highlands.
Karma has been trekking with his camera for the last 15 years. His photography exhibition features images from his trekking journeys, including the Snowman Trek, known as the world’s hardest trek. Encouraged by those around him, he decided to start a solo exhibition.
“My biggest supporter is my wife Chimi Zangmo. She always felt that I should exhibit my pictures and I didn’t see any better place than VAST. I want to convey a message, especially to the youth, because of social media and a lot of influence from the glamour world; we forget that we have such a beautiful country up on the mountains. I want to ask the youths if they have time to come to the exhibitions. Since I have covered almost all the mountains of Bhutan from the west to the east and I am exhibiting them through photographs and installation artworks, they should come and see.”
Besides, Karma could be the firsthand source for describing how living standards, glacier conditions, and climate change impacts have evolved over the past 15 years.
“Now because of the development, thanks to the government, the road is quite near and we take only 4 hours to reach Laya, but in that development, we also lose some things like innocence. When I go into the houses, I can see TV and some things that I don’t even see in Thimphu, they have it up there. 15 to 16 years ago, all I could see was lots of blankets and rice sacks. There is a weather phenomena change up there, I could see the lakes have been smaller, there’s lot of glacier melts and less snow on the mountains.”
The exhibition also highlights the people in the north and their nomadic way of living. One picture that grabs attention shows women in the north adorned with colourful jewellery and straw hats.
“I think the exhibition is a reflection of the photographer himself, you can see that it sort of speaks where he has been, we can see as evidence from his photographs. I think it also shows as a reflection of his journey his focus and where his intentions were and I think it sort of gives you a unique perspective,” said Jamtsho, a visitor.
The exhibition, which started on Friday, will end on 18th August and entry is free for visitors. The best way to escape the summer heat is to visit the exhibition and feel the chill and the beauty of Bhutan’s magnificent mountains.
Sonam Pelkid
Edited by Kipchu
