BIOGRAPHY
Tsogtsaikhan “Tsogo” Mijid was born and raised in the heart of the luminous mountains of Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. His artistic talents proved uninhibited from a young age while growing up in a society of parallel dysfunctions amid a conflicting period when strong cultural censorship and Communist idealism took place. Tsogo remains a versatile artist whose different art practices continues to reflect his migratory experiences.
Tsogo graduated with a BFA in traditional Mongolian arts from Mongolian University of Art and Culture (UB/MN) in 1984 and an MFA in Graphic Arts from Shevchenko Art Academy of Ukraine in 1990. Tsogo has had numerous solo and select group exhibitions in Mongolia, Hungary, Germany, Russia and America. His artworks are owned by the 14th Dalai Lama, Denver Art Museum and are included in permanent installations at The Denver Zoo and Meow Wolf Denver. Alongside his fine art practice, Tsogo remains one of the few affluent Mongolian artists in the world to follow in the ancient art of the Mongolian Tsam Mask making tradition.
A significant part of Tsogo’s art career involves his role as an accomplished Buddhist thangka painter (scroll painter). In 2004, 2010, and 2016 Tsogo has had the honorable privilege to commission and gift three two large-scale thangkas for His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama. His thangka paintings can be seen in Buddhist centres and temples throughout the world including the “Dashchoimbol Hiid” [Dahchoimbol Monastery] in Mongolia.
In 2009, Tsogo designed “Tulga” 22 foot public sculpture in Denver at Ulaanbaatar Park dedicated to the greater Mongolian community in the US. Tsogo is the founder of the Mongolian Culture and Heritage Center of Colorado in 2003 dedicated to the preservation of the Mongolian culture, heritage, and arts through public programming and education for the greater Mongolian and surrounding world communities.
In 2011, Tsogo was awarded the prestigious national Mongolian “Juuh Honorarium” medal and “The Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Culture Ambassador” medal again in 2015 by the Mongolian Ministry of Education Culture and Science from Ulaanbaatar for his outstanding and relentless years of philanthropy he has dedicated to the advancement of Mongolian culture and arts in the world. Tsogo has been a member at Pirate Contemporary Art Gallery in Denver, Colorado for twenty years.
In 2023, Tsogo was awarded the Denver Mayor’s Award for Excellence in Arts & Culture Global Art Award. Tsogo continues to be a key figure, merging both Western and Eastern cultures. His art aims to highlight and nurture the underrepresented voices of the Asian American communities living in the United States.
