MOSCOW.- The State Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow opened a major exhibition of artworks by Zorikto Dorzhiev. "Imagined Reality" features more than 60 paintings, drawings and bronze sculptures by the prominent artist from the Republic of Buryatia in Siberia, located on the border with Mongolia. The artworks date from 2005 to the present day. The opening also featured clothing designed by the artist.

Zorikto is one of the most successful young artists in the Russian Federation. Drawing inspiration from the ancient traditions of the nomadic Buryats who for centuries roamed the Eurasian landmass, Zorikto has breathed a modern interpretation into the ancient art of his people.

Zorikto was born in 1976 in Ulan Ude, the capital city of Buryatia. In 2002, he graduated with honors from the Krasnoyarsk State Art Institute. In 2004, he designed costumes for the film, "Mongol," which was directed by Sergei Bodrov, and which was nominated for an Oscar in the Best Foreign Film category.

In both December 2013 and 2014 Zorikto's artworks led the lineup at a charity auction, held under the patronage of film actress Uma Turman, that took place at Christie's in New York to benefit Tibet House. Tibet House in New York has also hosted Zorikto's solo exhibition, and his works have been displayed at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.

While his popularity grows in western capitals, Zorikto's art continues to find the most success in Asia, and he frequently exhibits in Hong Kong, Thailand, and Taiwan.

"Zorikto is a true contemporary artist who absorbs the leading creative tendencies of the global art scene," said Tatyana Metaksa, deputy director of Moscow's State Museum of the Peoples of the East. "However, he remains a faithful son of his land."

"All of Zorikto's artworks are marked by gentle but merciless humour, which in fact is a form of compassion and acceptance to the lives of others and their suffering," said Alexander Borovsky, head of contemporary art at the State Russian Museum in St Petersburg. "Zorikto shows us the mysterious Buryat people, and how they are earthly and yet intertwined with the vastness of the heavenly realms."