Yi Kai
I have visited Tibet twice. My first visit was in 1987, before I came to America. I was still in the Army. I was also studying for my MFA and preparing for my art exhibition in Beijing 1988. At that time my interest focused on surface things, like the way people dressed, the color of their faces, and, of course, the architecture. Primarily, I was drawn to the visual aspects of Tibet, not its culture, nor especially its religion, nor its history. Though I stayed in Tibet for over 3 months, I recall, I had no interest in its deeper roots.My second visit to Tibet occurred in 2004. I stayed for a mere 5 days. This time I brought with me fourteen years of USA life experience. I had a different life perspective, more focused on culture and the rhythm of Tibetan life, especially the spiritual side of Tibetan life.
I felt that I could now see both sides of the so-called Tibetan question equally and fairly. I could see the Western view of Tibet as a kind of "Shangri-la," and the view of the exile community that supported the Dali Lama.
The 20th century was the time of a long battle between two ideologies - Capitalism and Communism - for the hearts and minds of people. But the Communist experiment failed and the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 marked the end of that ideological war. Why? I believe that basic principles of Communism run contrary to human nature. After the fall of the Soviet Union, most countries wanted to develop economically. They turned to the United States as a model for economic and personal freedom.
For this reason, Western countries have come to a negative view of China. However, the Western view of the history of the relationship between China and Tibet is uninformed. Westerners often point to China´s occupation of Tibet in 1951, the chasing out of the Dali Lama in 1959, and the recent building of the railroad into Tibet as examples of China´s desire to destroy Tibet. However, the truth is far more complex. The two nations have a long history reaching back into the Tang Dynasty. After that many dynasties in China sent embassies and soldiers to Tibet over a 600 year period. China often occupied Tibet only to later withdraw its troops.
Today, Chinese point to the money spent for building the railroad and the rebuilding of Tibetan temples as an effort to help Tibet rebuild itself since the late 1980´s. However, China stubbornly refuses self-criticism; especially for the destruction of temples and hounding of monks during the Cultural Revolution in the 1960´s.
In fact, neither side is completely right nor completely wrong.
At some time in the future, someone in China or America, may very well pick up this book and ask: How did people live in the latter part of the 20th Century? What would the answer be?
Having lived the first half of my life in China, and the second half of my life in America, I can see that no culture is perfect - each can learn from the other. I could imagine to combine traditional Chinese culture - man and nature in harmony - with the Western emphasis on individual liberty and choice. If we can combine the best of the East and West than I believe the world has a chance of surviving. The goal of my work is to find the visual vocabulary to realize this dream.
The Tibet Questions is the same as the Chinese question. Neither the advocates of the Dali Lama or China are completely right nor are they completely wrong. Economic development is important and development will inevitably lead to political change. At the same time development will lead to change in culture and identity. This is becoming an issue in Tibet, where one side accuses the other of trying to keep Tibet as a kind of museum that must be preserved, and the other arguing that Tibetan cultural identity, especially its religious heritage is special and must be respected.
