Scenes From a Journey Through the Spiritual...

Scenes From a Journey Through the Spiritual World of Tibet

In 1985, photographer Julie Masterson read Peter Matthiessen’s “The Snow Leopard,” an autobiographical journal of the author’s quest through the Tibetan Himalayas in 1978 tracking the nearly extinct snow leopard. The author never glimpsed the elusive animal, but instead experienced a spiritual awakening.

“After that, I was hooked,” said Masterson, 50, a resident of San Marino. “I read everything I could get my hands on about Tibet.”

But it wasn’t until October, 1988, after several failed attempts, that Masterson, her husband and four other adventurers finally landed in Tibet, equipped for the rugged terrain. (Among other things, the group scaled Mt. Everest to 18,200 feet.)

Much like “The Snow Leopard,” the adventure has yielded unexpected rewards for Masterson--a successful photographic exhibit at the Pacific Asia Museum last June, and now another show at the McGroarty Cultural Arts Center sponsored by the Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Department. And it has brought personal tranquillity.

“It really changed me,” said the former high school Spanish teacher. “In Tibet, there’s very little sensual bombardment. You realize how our culture’s overrun with things to read; sounds, sights. You can’t keep up. But time is irrelevant in Tibet. Maybe it’s being at the top of the world. Spiritual thinking just comes naturally. You’re that much closer to heaven.”

On Thursday, Masterson will show 150 slides from that journey. The presentation coincides with the display of 25 of her photographs at the center through Jan. 31.

The exhibit and slides revolve around two themes, prayer flags and Buddhist monasteries. The flags, little bits of cloth with prayers written on them, are found everywhere, and “every time a flag moves, a prayer is going to heaven,” she said.

The monasteries she photographed include Ronbuk, the highest inhabited structure in the world, at 17,400 feet; Kumbua Stupa, said to house the ashes of Buddha, and Potala Palace, the residence of the Dalai Lama until his exile in 1959.

“This is an exceptional exhibit,” said Alice Asmar, curator, artist and instructor at the center. “Her seasoned eye captures the Tibetan earth tones--blues, browns, golds and whites--so magnificently there’s a feeling of upward movement. There’s almost a transcendental quality about them.”

Masterson’s photographic exploration didn’t begin until 1981, when she took a course at Pasadena City College. “My first time in the darkroom felt like home. I thought, ‘Where have I been all these years?’ ”

In 1982, she was accepted into Ansel Adams’ “Friends of Photography” workshop in Carmel. Studying with Adams stimulated her interest in working as an artist-photographer, “using the camera like an easel and paint to create my own interpretations.

“Ansel was a brilliant teacher. Very supportive. Surprisingly, he offered a balance of humor--he didn’t take himself too seriously--and pushing us to our individual levels. As for my own work, he widened my sights, set me free to get underneath technique and find the inner vision, the essence of each photo.”

Julie Masterson’s “Tibet: Traces of the Spiritual on the Roof of the World” slide show and discussion Thursday 7 to 8 p.m., in conjunction with her photographic exhibit, McGroarty Arts Center, 7570 McGroarty Terrace, Tujunga, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays, 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, free, (818) 352-5285.