HONG KONG — The Tibetan artist Gonkar Gyatso was in Hong Kong last month, putting the final touches on his latest exhibition at Pearl Lam Galleries. A bookish figure in black glasses and a blue button-up shirt, he stopped to inspect one of his new works, a 10-foot by 10-foot collage that showed a construction crane hook holding up the concentric spheres of a mandala, a Tibetan spiritual symbol. Cartoon trucks and diggers surrounded the spheres, which were dripping and melting like the polar caps. The piece, called “Shangri La” (2014), is one of 16 in the show, which runs through Oct. 31.

Mr. Gyatso, 53, whose work mixes Buddhist iconography and pop images like colorful children’s stickers, hoped that this exhibition would be a possible first step toward his ultimate goal: “My wish, someday, is to have a similar solo show in China, or even Lhasa,” he said, referring to the Tibetan capital. “I really want to show what I’ve done to my hometown.”

But the prospects of having a similar high-profile exhibition in mainland China, where there are more government restrictions than in Hong Kong, are limited, said the gallery owner, Pearl Lam. “Because of the censorship, it may be very difficult because of the Buddhist images — maybe more so than the commentary,” said Ms. Lam, who also has galleries in Shanghai and Singapore. “We’re talking about it.”

“It’s very special to have a Tibetan artist,” she added. “He’s one of the few Tibetan artists known internationally.”