Our Story
An unexpected captivation
As Tibet opened cautiously to the outside world in the 1980s, most visiting foreigners were stunned by the rugged beauty of the landscape, the extent of the destruction wreaked on the culture since the Chinese occupation in 1950, the wonder and scale of the monasteries that were slowly being re-built, and the welcoming smiles of the Tibetans.
There was so much to explore and so much to learn. Tibetan furniture was not first on the list, but for us it turned out to be another captivating aspect of the culture of Tibet and the start of a deep involvement — buying, restoring, and eventually selling some exceptional pieces.
The dealer's experience
Luca and I clearly recall our anticipation of entering a Lhasa dealer's home, adjusting to the darkness after the bright mountain sunlight, and being led through the sombre corridor to the main room. The smells of incense, butter lamps, and momos would waft through the air as we sat on the wooden couch, covered with a beautiful, if dusty old khaden rug during the daytime.
The lady of the house would enter with a thermos of steaming Tibetan butter tea, the perfect energy drink for high altitudes. Meanwhile, our eyes were roving around the room, glimpsing a perfect pair of old cabinets, a delightful sooty table, or a precious old teapot placed casually in front of us, the potential customers.
Every piece of furniture, household object, or carpet was produced according to the Tibetans' own aesthetic taste, thus was not merely a useful object but was resolutely beautiful and auspicious by design. — Camilla Corona
The first exhibition
The first ever exhibition of Tibetan furniture was held at the Pacific Asia Museum in Pasadena, California between November 2004 and February 2005. This exhibition took place due to the enthusiasm, passion and determination of our friend the late Ruth Hayward, together with the curator David Kamansky.
They published the catalogue in conjunction with the exhibition titled Wooden Wonders: Tibetan Furniture in Secular and Religious Life. We contributed a detailed description of how the furniture was made and its use in Tibet prior to 1950 in our article Tibetan Furniture: Construction, Form and Function.
Epilogue
Following the inevitable natural law of impermanence, the flourishing trade in Tibetan furniture of the 1990s and early 2000s between Tibet and Nepal slowed to a trickle. In 2020, the Covid pandemic changed the world.
When travel and trade pick up again, we are confident that the current dealers and collectors of antique Tibetan furniture will return to Nepal, which still has some of the best collections in the world.