About Us
We are Sonam Zoksang and Kathryn Culley, the proprietors of Vision of Tibet, the oldest Tibetan handicrafts store in New York City. Family run since 1987, Vision of Tibet specializes in the finest handicrafts from Tibet, Nepal, and India. Whenever possible these are made by Tibetan
artisans, and almost always from family-run businesses.
We carry no merchandise made in China, as we don't
support the government that has so brutally repressed
Tibetans since the 1950s.
Sadly, after 20 years, we are losing our NYC shop. The building was recently sold and we have to be out by the end of January. We are currently looking for another location and will certainly update this site with any news. If anyone has any leads about rentals in downtown Manhattan, you are welcome to email us: info@visionoftibet.com.
We also have a second store in the Manayunk section of Philadelphia that remains open for the forseeable future, contrary to previous reports of imminent closure.
Residents and visitors to the Hudson Valley: please contact us at info@visionoftibet.com to visit our Kingston showroom.
NYC shop:
167 Thompson St.
NY, NY, 10012
212-995-9276
Hours: 11-7 every day
We are often open extended hours during the holiday season; please call to find out details. |
Manayunk shop:
4225A Main St.
Philadelphia, PA 19127
215-930-0388
Hours: Mon, Weds, Thurs: 1 - 7 pm;
Fri: 1 - 9 pm; Sat: 11 am - 9 pm; Sun: 11 am - 7 pm.
Closed most Tuesdays.
We may be open extended hours some days, and some Tuesdays, during the holiday season; please call to find out details.
|
Sonam's Bio
Sonam Zoksang was born in Kyirong, Tibet in 1960 after the brutal Chinese invasion of Tibet. His parents escaped to India at their first opportunity, when Zoksang was one month old. He grew up in refugee schools, got a degree in Buddhist Dialectics, and taught himself photography. In 1985 Zoksang moved to the US, where he now runs Vision of Tibet. Active in the Tibetan Community as an advocate for human rights and political change, he is on the Board of Directors of the US Tibet Committee and has been president of the Tibetan Association of NY & NJ.
Sonam Zoksang’s mission is to tell the story of his homeland through photography. He does this by documenting Tibetans and Tibetan life, both in and out of Tibet. Whenever possible, he travels to Tibet to document the conditions in his Chinese-occupied homeland. He often takes pictures of Tibetan refugee communities in India, as well as in the US and other countries. Zoksang’s slide presentations at schools and cultural and community centers are always well-attended; he seeks out these opportunities as he feels education is particularly important. His photos have been widely published in books, magazines, and newspapers, and are widely exhibited, one major show having been in a US Congressional building in Washington DC. That exhibition was forced to close after less than one week due to political pressure. |
Kathryn's Bio
Kathryn Culley grew up in New York and taught English as a Foreign Language in Cameroon with the Peace Corps from 1992-94. Her involvement in the Tibet movement occurred after traveling in India and Nepal in 1994. She met Sonam at Vision of Tibet NY a year later. Trained as a photographer, artist and writer, she also maintains this website at her Hudson Valley home where she and Sonam are raising their two children. |
|
