In pics: Thangka painter in SW China's Tibet

Pema Wanza plays the guitar to relax in Lhasa, capital of southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, Aug. 8, 2015. Thangka, music, film. One can never imagine how these seemingly irrelevant elements come together until meeting 21-year-old Pema Wanza. Thangka, a Tibetan scroll-banner depicting various kinds of contents, can be seen in every monastery family shrine in Tibet Autonomous Region and has become a valuable kind of collection in recent years. Wanza started to learn drawing thangka at the age of eleven. After graduated from primary school, he decided to make thangka drawing as his profession and went to a painting workshop to learn it seriously. Fives years later, he finally qualified as a third-level thangka painter, with orders for thangka coming to him after that. Thangka drawing starts with sketching orienting lines on the canvas, then followed by coloring with different pigments mixed with animal glue and ox bile. Painting a small piece of work needs one or two months, while a large work may take about one year. Wanza always spends hours working in front of a piece of painting, and usually sings to relax when he feels tired. He sings well and his third album will be released on the upcoming Xuedun (Fermented Milk) Festival this year. Three years ago, Wanza participated in the live show "Princess Wencheng" as a figurant. He draws thangka in the daytime and performs at night. "My dream is to become a top Thangka artist." said Wanza, "And the happiness in my life is the realization of my dream." (Xinhua/Liu Jinhai)