‘KABI’ LAMA: NOT A POET, BUT AN ARTIST

When the 2011 Tsunami ravaged Japan, a young Nepali artist was stuck in Tokyo—stranded and in oblivion. With limited food supply, closed shopping centers and radiation leaking from the destroyed Fukushima nuclear power plant, the artist had nowhere to go. “My parents cried and asked me to come back home.  Yet, even when I said that I would pay twice the amount for the airfare, I couldn’t get a ticket,” Kabi Lama shared.

An art student who had gone to pursue his Masters in Painting at the University of Tokyo, Japan, destiny had another fate waiting. Lama, when he came back with his degree to become Nepal’s only lithograph artist.

Although Lama is now proud at his achievement, it was not so when he decided to pursue a degree in lithography. “In the beginning, it was extremely difficult,” Lama shared adding that at some point of time he even regretted his decision to pursue lithography.

In his own words, Lama said that the beginning was a “torture”. “I had gone to study painting and I was learning science—chemicals and their properties,” Lama shared in his studio, a kilometer away from Boudha Stupa.

“Science had never been my cup of tea and I was there, in my class learning something that I detested. To it, language too became a barrier,” Lama said.

Although Lama made very good paintings, when he went to print, the images would all turn black. “For six months, my paintings were ruined and I was frustrated. I threw my paintings. I even spoke to my professor and shared that I wouldn’t be able to do it,” Lama shared.

However, rather than accepting Lama’s proposal to quit, his professor, Shibuya Kazuyoshi offered him a tip of advice – to experiment with different stones and immerse into self study. “My professor, who had spent four years in Germany researching stones, is an expert in lithography and he is extremely respected in Japan,” Lama shared of his professor.

Lama then took his professor’s advice and then, his journey towards being Nepal’s only lithography artist started. “I studied chemical properties and experimented with a lot of stones. I would write down the details on my notepad for reference. I then came to find out that each stone had different chemical properties, a reason why my paintings would turn black,” Lama shared.

By the end of the first year, with guidance from professor Kazuyoshi and his self study, Lama’s paintings started to turn out as he wanted. “That was the happiest moment of my life,” Lama shared.

 Lithography is derived from two Greek words, Litho meaning stone and Graphia meaning writing. “In its simplest terms, lithography means writing on stones,” Lama shared.

Lithography was invented by German author, Alphonse Louis Poitevin in 1796 AD.  The process of creating a lithography art is physically draining, Lama shared. “You will need to level the limestone manually and draw images. Even a millimeter of unevenness will ruin best art. Since its base is greasy, we have to wear gloves as even a bit of sweat from your finger tip would be absorbed and would come out on the final print,” Lama said about his subject.

“Once the sketch is completed, it is treated by nitric acid and gum, a process called planography. Then a canvas is kept in a machine which then presses the stone to form images on the canvas,” Lama shared, adding that while drawing, one would need to draw mirror images. “While printing, it would come as a straight image.”

Success is never by luck. It rather is through continuous hard work and by overcoming obstacles. “My parents were never happy when I said I wanted to get into painting. Like every parent would want from a child, my parents wanted me to have a good career, not a field that was extremely difficult to survive on. Hence, it was extremely difficult for me to make them understand. Only when they got a closer look at my paintings and saw them being brought by those who appreciated it did they understand,” Lama, who currently works as a visiting faculty in at WLC College, Gaushala said.

Although Lama entered into lithography by luck, worked hard to be where he now stands. “While Japan has excellent education, Tokyo is also one of world’s most expensive cities,” Lama shared adding that there seldom were opportunities for students to employment. “You have to do manual work, and before I was offered a teaching assistantship, I worked as a manual worker for two years,” Lama said.

Physical work, both at his work and at his Masters program consumed him. “I slept very less and at a time, it even started to become draining. It was then I realized that wherever I went, I was battling with my identity wherever I went. My realization was so profound that I started to replicate my life in my artwork. From 2011 AD till the end of 2013 AD, I then created the Identity series,” Lama shared.

After four years in Japan, Nepal was calling him. “After I booked my tickets, I suddenly came to realize that I wouldn’t be able to do lithography in Nepal. I immediately approached my professor and asked him if he would allow me to use the studio for a week. With time tickling every second, I did an experimental Action Series,” Lama shared. “Action series includes whole body movement. One of my action series was bought by Suresh Vaidya for Rs. 200,000, my most expensive painting so far.” Lama shared.