Cutting out identity: Ngoshi’s paper collages reimagine heritage

In a small yet vibrant corner of McLeodganj, artist Ngoshi Choedon is transforming paper into celebrations of identity, memory and resilience. Her ongoing exhibition at The Other Space, supported by Tibet Fund, is more than a showcase — it is a deeply personal tribute to the cultural threads that bind Tibetan and Himalayan traditions.

Born and raised across Tibetan settlements in Himachal — from Paonta Sahib to Chauntra — Ngoshi’s journey as a self-taught paper collage artist and certified Expressive Arts Therapy practitioner is rooted in longing and imagination. Though her early dream of pursuing fine arts was deferred, her MBA years in Delhi became fertile ground for creative resistance. What began with handmade greeting cards has since blossomed into a body of work admired in elite circles, with one of her collages even housed at The Retreat, the President of India’s summer residence in Shimla.

Drawing inspiration from the traditional attire of Tibetan regions — Amdo, U-Tsang and Kham — as well as Himachali communities like the Gaddi, Kinnauri and Spiti tribes, her collages capture garments she often never wore but always envisioned. With vibrant textures and intricate layering, she reimagines jewellery, fabric folds and motifs as vessels of ancestral memory.

“Paper has always felt magical,” Ngoshi reflects. “Something so ordinary can hold extraordinary meaning — a heritage reimagined.”

For her, the exhibition is both artistic expression and quiet resistance — a reminder to celebrate what survives: the colour, wisdom and beauty of a heritage that refuses to fade. Each collage is not merely art but spirit preserved on paper.