Nepalese people, as if they were born artists.
Nepalese art, like the bright and flowing sarees on Nepalese women, is bright and colorful, making people linger and forget the vulgarity.
When you go to Nepal, as long as you see Nepalese women, you can see the sari; when you see the sari, you also see the flowing art. Nepalese women have a slightly brown complexion, lined with a light and delicate traditional dress sari, coupled with deep eyes, which exude a dreamy South Asian charm. Nepalese interpret the understanding and pursuit of life, aesthetics and color with unique creativity. Whether it is on the occasion of the wedding and funeral banquet, or in the daily life of going to work, there is almost nowhere to catch a glimpse of these beautiful figures and look forward to the gods.
In his aesthetic lectures, Hegel divided all art in human history into three types: symbolic, archaic and romantic. According to Hegel, typical symbolic art is architecture; typical romantic art is poetry; typical archaic art is sculpture.
Based on my own travel observations, I also roughly divide Nepalese art into fluid art and static art. What takes time, I call it fluid art; what only needs space, is called static art.
The main reason why I was struck by the art of Nepal was their fluid art.
In addition to the sari just mentioned, music is the main artery of Nepal and an indispensable and beautiful accompaniment to life's whiskers.
Nepal is almost a kingdom of musical instruments that is unique in the world, as if everyone is born in a special instrument class. Men and women, young and old, masses of all walks of life, playing and singing, are proficient in everything. You go into the city or the country, anytime, anywhere, from early morning prayers to late at night, and you can hear music all day long.
In Pokhara, on the way to the transition pier of Fishtail Lodge, we met two Nepalese folk musicians who played the piano and beat the drums, and they sang while playing, a Resham firiri, so engaged that the audience was completely immersed in it, and even danced. From the noisy Thamel neighborhoods to the quiet countryside, you can hear this beautiful and cheerful melody wherever you go. I was deeply moved by the simple and simple melody of this song from the first time I heard it. This love song minor is a very famous folk song in Nepal, and its status is equivalent to the jasmine flowers that sing all over the north and south of the Great River in China. 整个音乐非常有节奏感，旋律简单反复吟唱，很是琅琅上口，淋漓尽致地展现了尼泊尔神秘、独特的民族风情。 The instrument they played was the Salengi quad, accompanied by the double-sided tambourine Dolac. Vendors selling this four-stringed violin are all over Nepal, they walk and sing while they are skilled, often making people stop and listen, and finally they can't help but buy it. Just like me.
At the dawn of the morning, Kathmandu's Duba Square, a bazaar with lively vegetables, fruits and groceries, extends from the square to the streets and alleys, and out of the various costumes of various musical instruments, they hold a ceremonial small-scale parade, walking in groups and coming, as if celebrating a festival. In Badgang Duba Square, the streets and alleys of Badgang, during the Sacred Cow Festival, people almost fell out of the city, blowing and beating, full of joy.
It is said that the artists who are mainly engaged in folk music activities in Nepal are called Damani and Gueret. Daman usually takes the tailor as a profession, organizes into teams, and each wears a uniform costume to go from village to village. On religious holidays and folk festivities, they are hired to play music. Originally a court musician in the 18th century, Guére became a wandering entertainer after the 19th century. They are good at singing lyrical songs, narrative songs and religious songs. I find it strange that there are so many tailors and court musicians in Nepal?
Due to various factors such as geography, history and ethnicity, two different styles of folk music have been formed: mountain music and plain music. Mountain music is based on the five-tone scale, mostly using two beats, the tune is relatively stable, often within an octave, and the influence of Tibetan music is more obvious. The music of the Plains region is dominated by six or seven-tone scales. There are plenty of compound beats and ornamentation. Folk songs are more abundant, folk songs and dances are a common genre, and Indian music has more influences. The main instruments in Nepal are: the salengi, the shah naii pipe, the dolac drum, the trumpet, the flute, etc. These constitute the richness and representation of Nepalese music. Some songs resemble Chinese soundless scales, sounding familiar, but the special portamento brings the feeling to India, and even to the Thai-Burmese-Vietnamese mood of the Indochina Peninsula. This is the special charm of Nepalese folk songs.
Tibetan compatriots also like to sing. On the last day of the Shelton Festival in Lhasa, returning from Norbulingka, the happy Tibetans on the bus sang Tibetan songs in a high-pitched voice, and the whole car was infected, singing in harmony, pulling the tone, and the scene was moving and unforgettable. But Tibetans rarely use musical instruments, and even if they use them to accompany singing and dancing, they only choose the guitar - Zamu Nian, commonly known as the Tibetan six-stringed violin.
In Nepal, drivers also have a high level of musical literacy. The sound of car horns echoing through the streets of Nepal and the streets of urban and rural areas, high-pitched and melodic, noisy but not monotonous, not only does not feel irritable, but most of the time it is an artistic enjoyment. Throughout Nepal, all the vehicles formed a huge symphony orchestra.
The artistic talent of Nepalese people is also reflected in the visual. Especially breathtaking are the fancy car "faces" and "tattoos". In trucks and buses, there is hardly a blank space on the body, and without exception it is painted with colorful patterns and words. The wonderful thing is that the patterns and words are all hand-drawn, and no car has the same pattern and text, just like in Nepal you won't find a building with an exterior wall design. Each car has a personality and a burst of humor. As you look closely at the decorative arts of each Nepali car, you'll find a free and comprehensive gallery of flowing art. You really feel what it means to love art.
In addition to mobile art, Nepal also has a static art with a history of hundreds of years that tourists will enjoy.
Nepal's architecture is very distinctive, and throughout the country, you can see buildings with a strong Nepalese national style that have been well preserved for thousands of years. Whether it is the royal palace of the dynasty or the home of the people, there are exquisite wood carvings on the doors and windows of the building, the pattern of birds and animals, unique, and the workmanship is dexterous and transparent. The "peacock window" carved with the image of the peacock and the 55 windows of the old royal palace of Badgang are masterpieces of world civilization. Wood carving is regarded as the pride of Nepal.
Regarding the art of Nepal, another example is a little more recent: the Nepal National Pavilion at the 2010 Shanghai World Expo has about 200 doors and windows, all of which are completely carved by the simplest traditional hand, and these exhibits and decorations are the art of the collective hard work of craftsmen from more than 300 Nepalese families, inheriting the traditional skills of Nepal in the 13th and 14th centuries. If four or five people work together to make a door or window, it will take about 20 to 25 days. It is understood that the Nepal Pavilion will be named "Anigo Center" to commemorate Anigo's outstanding contributions in architecture and to enhancing friendly exchanges between China and Nepal in ancient times. Anigo is a national hero of Nepal and an outstanding ancient Nepalese architectural craftsman with a high reputation in China, who built numerous pagodas in his lifetime, and Beijing also left his great masterpiece, the White Pagoda.
Nepal's rich artistic treasures are evident from this.
Next, please enjoy a group of six thangkas numbered 158-203231, in the style of black gold paintings in Nepal:
