Christening a new exhibit with a classy cocktail party is all good and well, but nothing can compete with seven Tibetan monks constructing a massive sand mandala. To open the Frist’s Secrets of Buddhist Art: Tibet, Japan and Korea exhibit in February, monks from a touring company called the Mystical Arts of Tibet mesmerized a crowd for five days by methodically grating colored sand to create an intricate pattern. In keeping with Buddhist tradition, the mandala was ceremoniously destroyed at the close of the exhibit as a reminder of the impermanence of life, but its memory lives on. NANCY FLOYD
Best Art Event
Tibetan Monks’ Sand Mandala Creation at the Frist
Photo: Daniel Meigs
