ERDENESIIN KHUREE

This calligraphy center opened its doors in June 2022, a few meters from the Erdene Zuu monastery. Created by a Frenchman living in Mongolia and the Mongolian artist Tamir Samandbdraa, it is dedicated to the art of Mongolian calligraphy, to the preservation of this ancient script, called bitchig, and to the safeguard of this cultural heritage. Established by Chinggis Khaan in the 13th century, the Mongolian bitchig was officially replaced in 1941 by the Cyrillic alphabet, and its use was virtually abandoned in Mongolia until the 1990s. Its calligraphic script, inscribed in 2013 on UNESCO's List of Intangible Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding, is now experiencing a revival in the country. It is now taught in schools, and the Mongolian administration is expected to make official use of it again.

The Erdenesiin Khuree center honors this script thanks to the works of Tamir and other local calligraphers who are exhibited in half a dozen yurts. It is also possible to meet Tamir, the artist who co-founded the center. He leads workshops and gives demonstrations to visitors, who can buy calligraphies from him for US$10. Both English and French speaking, he gives tours of the main yurt and explains with passion his approach and practice. The most curious will dare to try their hand at calligraphy and learn how to handle the brush and run the Indian ink on the paper under his attentive eye.

By setting up in Kharkhorin, the center aims to create a new dynamic and to decentralize access to culture, the cultural establishments of importance being mainly concentrated in Ulaanbaatar. It also takes advantage of Kharkhorin's location as a cultural crossroads on the Silk Road due to its status as the former capital and administrative center of the Mongolian Empire.

We note the human and social dimension of the establishment, which allows people with disabilities to benefit from artistic therapy sessions. Two sessions are organized each year, in spring and in autumn, and the works realized during these specific workshops are exhibited in one of the ger of the museum.

The center is also open to other forms of Mongolian art and sets up artist residencies to promote the contemporary art scene. Its collections are constantly evolving, and all the creations presented can be purchased.

A space that will quickly become unavoidable during a visit to Kharkhorin.