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Almine Rech

Tsherin Sherpa

Born in Kathmandu, Nepal in 1968, Tsherin Sherpa currently works and lives between Kathmandu (Nepal) and Northern California (USA). He was trained in thangka painting by his father Master Urgen Dorje, eventually drawing on this vocabulary to create artworks that incorporate Buddhist iconography and pop culture references. His works offer an interplay and tension between sacred/secular, traditional/contemporary, settlement/movement. Sherpa’s practice stems from his personal experiences within the Himalayan Diaspora as well as the nomadic history of Himalayan people. His experimentations with visual languages adapt, reimagine, and reappropriate identities, symbols, colors, and gestures to surpass their chronological and cultural constrictions.

Sherpa has exhibited across the United States, Europe and Asia that includes representing Nepal at the inaugural participation at the Venice Biennale in 2022. He has also been part of Yokohama Triennale (2020); Yinchuan Biennale (2018); Kathmandu Triennale (2017); Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art, Brisbane  (2015-16); and Dhaka Art Summit (2014).  

His work is included in private collections around the world, as well as in the collections of Victoria & Albert Museum, London; Rubin Museum of Art, New York; Queensland Art Gallery & Gallery of Modern Art, Australia; Asian Art Museum, San Francisco; Virginia Museum of Fine Arts; World Museum, Liverpool; Samdani Art Foundation, Dhaka and Uli Sigg Collection. In February 2022 the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts presented his first museum mid-career retrospective.  

Selected artworks

  • Tsherin Sherpa,                                      An Illusory Appearance of Loss and Gain, 2023

    Tsherin Sherpa An Illusory Appearance of Loss and Gain, 2023

    Cast bronze
    91.44 x 50.8 cm
    36 x 20 in

  • Tsherin Sherpa,                                      This is not a Rorschach Test, 2023

    Tsherin Sherpa This is not a Rorschach Test, 2023

    Gold leaf, acrylic and ink on canvas

    151 x 126 cm
    59 1/2 x 49 1/2 in

  • Tsherin Sherpa,                                      Re-Examining the Habitual Pattern II, 2023

    Tsherin Sherpa Re-Examining the Habitual Pattern II, 2023

    White gold leaf, acrylic and ink on canvas
    178 x 122 cm
    70 x 48 in

  • Tsherin Sherpa,                                      A Temporary Solution for Dualistic Mind II, 2023

    Tsherin Sherpa A Temporary Solution for Dualistic Mind II, 2023

    Pale gold leaf, acrylic and ink on canvas
    183 x 213 cm
    72 x 84 in

  • Tsherin Sherpa,                                      Emotion Leads to Action and Action Creates Result, 2023

    Tsherin Sherpa Emotion Leads to Action and Action Creates Result, 2023

    Acrylic and ink on canvas
    177 x 121 cm
    69 1/2 x 47 1/2 in

  • Tsherin Sherpa,                                      Nothing is Random or Accidental, 2023

    Tsherin Sherpa Nothing is Random or Accidental, 2023

    White Gold leaf, acrylic and ink on canvas
    147 x 121 cm
    58 x 47 1/2 in

Gallery exhibitions

Museum exhibitions

Selected press