Mongolian lithographic prints contain images of Chinese guitars and musicians serenading an audience.
Printmaking is a comparatively new art form in Mongolia. In Mongolia, artists use woodblock engravings to make lithographic prints depicting scenes from everyday life, including musical themes among natural settings or vibrantly colored backgrounds. Mongolian artists have only been making lithographic prints for about the last 50 years. Although the art form of printmaking is still developing in Mongolia, there exists a strong diversity of works of fine quality.
Instructions
1. Study Mongolian art history books as well as the works of current Mongolian printmaking artists. Identify the recurring themes in classic Mongolian art, such as representations of nature and ornate patterns and notice how modern printmakers apply them to their art. Familiarize yourself with modern Mongolian printmakers and try to memorize several specific styles so you can reference them when assessing other prints.
2. Examine the lithographic print and look for a date signed by the artist. Mongolian printmaking dates from around 1949; if the date on the print is within the last 50 to 60 years and the image contains a musical theme or a musical instrument and elements from the Mongolian artistic tradition, then it might be a Mongolian lithographic print.
3. Check for images of simple rural life that include instruments or a musician in the background. Scenes of simple pleasures is a major theme in Mongolian printmaking. Images of the grasslands of Mongolia or of townspeople enjoying eating or drinking, bathing in a scenic river or playing an instrument are popular subjects. Mongolian artists commonly use contrasting colors and brightness in people's faces against a dark background.
4. Look for romantic representations of Mongolian musicians. Musicians are drawn serenading lovers or playing instruments. Artists like to create these scenes with a majestic tone, with the wind in the musician's hair and grasses around him, for instance. They also use blurred colors to achieve a lyrical quality in their prints and to denote the romance of the image.
5. Look for energetic pictures in which the musician is not shown, but a dancer moves to music. Strong, dark, heavy lines illustrate the energy in the dancing subject and artists use color contrasts to portray the metaphorical music in the scene.
