Yangdzom Lama (she/her)

Yangdzom Lama is a London-based multimedia artist who works with painting, embroidery and ceramics.

She is inspired by her Himalayan heritage, art, culture, and Tibetan Buddhist teachings on compassion. Her work is often autobiographical and features animal symbolism to explore themes such as interconnectedness and the divine. She credits the creation of her intricate artworks to her experiences living with autism. Through her art, Yangdzom Lama aims to celebrate neurodivergence as well as the beautiful diversity of all beings on Earth.

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Inspired by the Rubin Museum’s Map in the Shape of a Srinmo (Ogress), Yangdzom Lama created a map of the city of where she lives, London. She noticed the shape resembles an iconic urban bird, the pigeon. As in most of her work, she created animal gods and goddesses that represent people and feelings that are meaningful to her. Here she portrays locations and buildings that are an important part of her life alongside a self-portrait of herself holding the bird, treasuring and nurturing it.

In the background the faceless figure of her father carries a tiger, representing his Himalayan identity. The different mediums used in the piece reflect her identity as an artist, revealing a multicultural quality that is also inspired by the past, as represented in the colors traditionally seen in thangka paintings.

This object from the Rubin Museum’s collection is presented in the Reimagine exhibition in dialogue with Love for the London Pigeon Deity, inviting new ways of encountering traditional Himalayan art.