I’m an American textile artist and teacher of the sacred art of silk appliqué thangka. In 1992, after attaining masters degrees in urban planning and management from UCLA, I traveled to the seat of the Tibetan government in exile in India to manage an economic development fund. In a twist of fate, I ended up sewing pictures of buddhas instead.
Trained by two of the finest living Tibetan appliqué artists, I’m one of very few non-Tibetans to have mastered the art form. At the end of my apprenticeship, the Dalai Lama encouraged me to carry the transformative power of this artwork to my own culture. My book is one part of fulfilling that sacred assignment. Threads of Awakening: an American Woman’s Journey in Tibet’s Sacred Textile Art to be published by She Writes Press in 2022
