Tsolmon Damba

Tsolmon Damba was born in Darkhan, Mongolia. He grew up playing on the picturesque banks of the Kharaa river surrounded by the mountains of Kherkh and Mount Shirhentseg, gazing at the blue ridge of the majestic Noyon Uul in the midst of the beautiful, serene countryside of Mongolia. At three years old Tsolmon started drawing and painting. His unmistakable talent and creativeness caught everyone's attention, especially his grandmother Baga Ajaa. When the time came, Baga Ajaa packed up her grandson and brought Tsolmon to where his talent could flourish: the capital city of Ulaanbaatar. There, among the hustle and bustle of city life, she enrolled her grandson in the Mongolian College of Fine Art, where he graduated and would later teach.

Tsolmon was first immersed in ancient Mongolian art, especially the prehistoric cave and rock drawings as well as the indigenous art of the Bronze Era. At the Mongolian Cultural Heritage Center in Ulaanbaatar, Tsolmon worked as an artist and helped restore historical works of art. While painting, procuring and restoring the Center's priceless works and artifacts, Tsolmon found his raison d'etre (life's true passion) and earned his master's degree in Traditional Mongolian Painting.

From the banks of the Kharaa river, to Ulaanbaatar, to worldwide exhibits and art shows, to teaching demonstrations at the Smithsonian's Freer Gallery of Art, the Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C., the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery — Tsolmon's unique talent comes full circle in Takhi the Wild Horse. Here, Tsolmon beautifully depicts Takhi living wild and free back in their native Mongolian countryside.