Ancient statue- one of the 87 exhibits
The Dragon’s Gift will be open for public viewing in the Big Apple starting on September 19. The formal opening of the exhibition in New York City’s Rubin Museum of Art will be inaugurated by the Prime Minister Lyonchhen Jigmi Y. Thinley on Thursday evening, September 18.

The Dragon’s Gift: The Sacred Arts of Bhutan will make its stop in New York City’s Rubin Museum of Art.

Thousands of Americans and people from across the world will get a rare chance to see what the New York Times has described as an unparalleled glimpse into the spiritual and artistic riches of a nation that today possesses the world’s most intact Vajrayana Buddhist culture.

The Dragon’s Gift is the first exhibition of Bhutan’s sacred art in the United States. The exhibition made its first call was at the Hawaii’s Honolulu Academy of Art in February.

The 87 exhibits range from ancient statues inlaid with gold and turquoise, kuthangs dating from the 16th to the 19th centuries and were selected by exhibition curators and Bhutanese officials from the kingdom’s temples, monasteries and Dzongs.

The Rubin Museum’s senior curator Ramon Prats is quoted as saying that the exhibits are not only national treasures, but also living icons, whose sacredness must be maintained.

Meanwhile, New York City is already getting a livelier preview of the exhibition as 13 Bhutanese monks perform Zhana Nga Cham and Tung Ngam in public spaces in and around New York City.

The dance performance started on September 13 and will go on till the September 21. Also during the festival a weaver from Khoma will complete a kira which will then go on sale on 12 December. Source: BBS