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MARIA-KATHARINA LANG — TSETSENTSOLMON BAATARNARAN
Mardsan Sharaw (B. Sharaw) followed the photo portrait.” After the revolution
of 1921 Sharaw became a printer, designing the masthead for periodicals such as
the army magazine Uriya (Call) as well as Mongolian paper currency, medals, and
other works. He also painted portraits of Lenin in 1924 (the first in Mongolia) by the
order of Damdinii Siikhbaatar (the leader of the revolution of 1921). Sharaw further
produced revolutionary propaganda posters. He is considered as the founder of
a modern line drawing style in Mongolia. Sharaw painted the portrait of Lenin after
his photograph and he further depicted revolutionary elements such as a red star and
flag, still the portrait kept effects of Buddhist artistic manifestation. Portraiture and
photography constituted a new turn in the used perception and modes of depiction.
The art of individual portraiture increasingly took terrain.
Thangkas, the traditional Tibeto-Mongolian Buddhist scroll paintings had also ob¬
viously effected on the pictorial manifestation of the new political system and on the
“communist symbolism.”'® The Mongolian People’s Republic established a centrally
tuled system to reach the utmost periphery of the country. The Fifth Assembly of the
Mongolian People’s Revolutionary Party issued a resolution as follows:
“It is completely possible to copy line drawings in numbers and distribute them
to remote peripheries of Mongolia, which has a vast territory and not-developed
infrastructure. The party supported to guide drawings of artists in order to educate
the public with revolutionary ideology, controlled widely established clubs under
the party, and opened new ‘red corners’ (u/aan bulan) in every banner to prepare
portraits.""
There were further decisions and resolutions on new cultural institutions for fine art
within the soviet-style modernisation. By the resolution of the Central Committee
of the Mongolian People’s Revolutionary Party of December 1942, an Office for
Paintings and Artcraft (Dsurag, urlaliin gadsar) which was expanded to the Office
for Fine Art (Diirslekh urlagiin gadsar) in 1946 was established. The First Congress
of Mongolian Artists, held on May 24 in 1955, decided to establish the Union of
Mongolian Artists. In this way, modern Mongolian art was institutionalised. The
School of Fine Art was already established in 1945 where the class for Mongol
Dsurag was opened in 1971." Soviet-style Western fine art was introduced in the
educational system of Mongolia: the education system from lama (monk) to pupil
in the monastery changed to ‘Soviet specialists’ (ds6wlodltiin mergeljilten) teacher
to school pupil or student at the School of Fine Art. How the changing imagery was
perceived within society is an interesting question.
° Jlamamucypox, Lana: Osrex XKaMŐaJIBIH apHa. VIICBIH XJBJIDJIHŰH Tazap, Yıraanbaarap 1959, 14.
'0 Zoltan, Nagy: Namo Buddhaya, Namo Dharmaya, Namo Sanghaya! Namo Lenina, Namo Ideologiya,
Namo Partiya! In: Bolor-un Gerel. Ed. Birtalan, Agnes — Rakos, Attila. Eétvés Lorand University,
Budapest 2005, 505.
1 Baracypox, V. — LHouxx, 1. (omx.): MAXH-aac yprar, yTra 30XHOJBIH Tajlaap rapracaH TOTTOON
umänsspyyAa (1921-1966). YıcbIH X9BI9IHÜH Tazap, Yraan6aarap 1967, 15.
2 3argcypon, Y. — Urn, I. (amx.): MAXH-aac ypnar..., 128-130.
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