Local publication SF Examiner recently featured Zaya‘s current show Steppe Warriors as one of their weekly art picks, along with 20th century “California Plein-Air Painting” -a Californian rendition of 20th century French Impressionism- and the British Public Catalogue teaming with BBC to digitally publish EVERY publicly owned oil painting in the UK to the internet, totalling over 200,000 works. While Zaya explores traditional Mongolian and Japanese themes of war, passion, and female heroism that date as far back as the 13th century, the UK is infinitely preserving it’s body of art in a virtual time capsule. The art world of the 21st century is a merging of tradition, culture, location, and time- past, present, and future. If you want to experience an instance of the past, check out Zaya‘s show at Shooting Gallery, now open to the public for viewing through January 5th.

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Photo by Cameron Van Loos

Zaya’s show Steppe Warriors, which opened last Saturday at the Shooting Gallery, has been getting a lot of press recently. Hi-Fructose posted this article, which also features New2‘s show at White Walls In One Hand a Ghost, the Other an Atom, by Nastia Voynovskaya. She included a photo of the impromptu performance by  Zaya’s friend, who played a traditional Mongolian instrument called a Morin Khuur, at his opening. Complex Magazine‘s Nick Schonberger also highlighted Zaya’s show in this post where he comments on the blended contrast of Zaya’s “powerful warrior narratives with softer portraits of geisha girls. The contrast is jarring, but nonetheless logical bringing the whole oeuvre to logical conclusion.” Zaya’s show Steppe Warriors will be showing at the Shooting Gallery through January 5, 2024.

View more photos after the jump!
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This past Saturday, Zaya opened his exhibition Steppe Warriors at the Shooting Gallery. This was the Zaya’s first solo show with us, and the event even included a performance by the artist’s friend who was dressed in Mongolian folk costume while playing a traditional instrument. The paintings at the show included images of geishas juxtaposed to narratives of fighting and hunting scenes from the time of Ghengis Khan. Steppe Warriors will be open for viewing until January 5, 2024.

Please view more photos of the event after the jump.
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Zaya’s Steppe Warriors will be opening tonight, at the Shooting Gallery, in less than hour. Make sure to stop by to see the works and hear the sounds of the traditional Mongolian Morin khuur, which a friend of the artist’s will be playing for the reception.

The origin story which Zaya recounted was a beautiful, slightly eerie, tale of a warrior blessed with a winged horse that he would ride nightly to visit his lover across the seas, before returning to battle the next day. One night, a woman who had grown jealous of the beloved’s nightly visits cut the wings from the horse, leaving it to die. When the warrior saw what had happened he was crushed, and mourned for the beast nightly. Out of this mourning and love he carved the Morin khuur from the skull of the horse and used hair from it’s mane as the strings, creating an instrument that would memorialize, if not resurrect, the spirit of his lost companion. The Morin khuur is still strung with horse’s hair to this day, and appears on the World Heritage of Art and Cultural Objects list.

Steppe Warriors, New Works by Zaya
Opening Reception – Saturday, December 15th, 7-11pm
On View Through January 5th, 2024
@Shooting Gallery, 839 Larkin St.
San Francisco, CA 94109

Yesterday morning I sat down with Zaya, whose show Steppe Warriors will be opening this Saturday, December 15th, at Shooting Gallery. Born and raised in a small town in Southern Mongolia, Zaya now lives with his wife and children in Japan. Frequent travels around the world (Hong Kong and Singapore are next on his travel wishlist) allow the artist to fulfill a wanderlust that has been with him since he was a child, growing up in an isolated town where the only way for a kid to sneak off to bigger cities was to hop on a passing truck and hold on for four hours. Perhaps all the roaming is a remnant of the nomadic lifestyle Zaya’s ancestors thrived on. The artist certainly looks to these herdsmen to inspire the ink and watercolor beauties of Steppe Warriors. Read below for a deeper look at Zaya’s influences, heritage, and how the fall of communism in Mongolia has diffused into his work.

Steppe Warriors, New Works by Zaya
Opening Reception – Saturday, December 15th, 7-11pm
On View Through January 5th, 2024
@Shooting Gallery, 839 Larkin St.
San Francisco, CA 94109

More After the Jump Read more »

The beauty is in the details, especially in Zaya‘s new works in his upcoming show Steppe Warriors. At a nose’s distance, each fine line, wisp of color and texture showcases the artist’s incredible attention to small detail. Then, once you’ve allowed yourself to take a step back, the piece instantly transforms into a majestic spectacle. It’s all quite mesmerizing. The show comprises of 14 story-telling pieces, all done on delicate cotton.

Detail shots after the jump! Though, quite frankly, pictures just can’t capture the experience of Zaya’s show. With that, we highly suggest you join us for Zaya’s opening this Saturday at Shooting Gallery from 7-11pm! Please RSVP with us here! The show will be ongoing through January 5th, 2024.

Steppe Warriors
New Works by Zaya
Opening Reception – Saturday, December 15th, 7-11pm
RSVP

On View Through January 5th, 2024
@ Shooting Gallery (shootinggallerysf.com)
839 Larkin St, San Francisco, CA

Take a closer look. Jump for more!

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Zaya, an artist born and raised in Mongolia, currently residing in Japan, will be unveiling his solo show Steppe Warriors , much farther west, in our home city of San Francisco, this Saturday at Shooting Gallery. Visions of finely-dressed nobility and scenes of warriors rushing forward in grim determination dominate Zaya’s new body of work. All composed of gouache, ink, and watercolor, each piece is evidence of the careful attention to detail Zaya stands by.

We’re happy to see  Steppe Warriors written up by Mary Iverson in SF Gate‘s 96 Hours and look forward to seeing you all at the opening, don’t forget to RSVP here.

Steppe Warriors New Works by Zaya
Opening Reception – Saturday, December 15th, 7-11pm
On View Through January 5th, 2024
@ Shooting Gallery (shootinggallerysf.com)
839 Larkin St, San Francisco, CA

Hi Fructose Magazine‘s Nastia Voynovskaya just posted a couple preview shots of Shooting Gallery’s upcoming show Steppe Warriors, new works by Zaya.

“Hailing from Mongolia, Zaya creates soft watercolor and ink paintings inspired by Mongolian folklore and contemporary Asian art.”

The show next door at White Walls will serve as quite the contrast in style to “Steppe Warriors,” while Zaya pays ode to centuries old traditional Eastern art, Australian artist New2 channels a Futurist approach in constructing his takes on another traditional art form- street writing and lettering. The two bodies of work being shown side by side create an interesting juxtaposition that exemplifies the scope and potential of the contemporary art scene. Check out the previews of New2′s “In One Hand a Ghost, the Other an Atom,” and make sure to RSVP to “Steppe Warriors” on Facebook!

Steppe Warriors New Works by Zaya
Opening Reception – Saturday, December 15th, 7-11pm
On View Through January 5th, 2024
@ Shooting Gallery (shootinggallerysf.com)
839 Larkin St, San Francisco, CA

More photos after the jump! Read more »

For Immediate Release:

Shooting Gallery Presents:

Steppe Warriors

Shooting Gallery is pleased to present Steppe Warriors, a solo show by Zaya, featuring twelve ink and watercolor paintings inspired by the Mongolian horsemen history of Chinggis Khan (more commonly known in the U.S. by the Persian spelling Ghengis Khan.) Through watercolors, gouache, and mixed media, the artist brings a new life to the styles and themes of Mongolian traditional painting with the addition of Japanese techniques and contemporary Asian art influences. The opening reception will be Saturday, December 15, from 7-11pm, and is free and open to the public for viewing through January 5, 2024.

Born in 1975 in a dry, desert town of Southwestern Mongolia artist Zayasaikhan Samuu, known as Zaya, began his life within a place of rich cultural history that much of the world knows little about. The extensive warfare of the Mongol Empire and its incredible expansion under the rule of Chinggis khan inspires a wealth of powerful imagery in Steppe Warriors, but perhaps even more powerful are the scenes of daily life, honoring the Central Asian nomadic lifestyle and a people who have flourished amid harsh climates and religious censure. First converted to Buddhism in the late thirteenth century, the Mongols’ culture is one undeniably shaped by Tibetan spirituality, though Buddhism was outlawed as much of Mongolia’s heritage was repressed during the country’s most strident communist era beginning in the 1930s. The late eighties marked a lessening of oppression in a restructuring movement akin to the Soviet’s perestroika,called shinechel by Mongolians, and with it the customs and values of Zaya’s country began to resurface, inspiring his artistic talents.

Utilizing a detail-driven style, Zaya has said he is set on ‘evangelizing Mongolian art through a contemporary oeuvre that suggests antiquity,’ and he is doing so with remarkable skill. Both warriors and royalty are depicted with the same sleek grace and fluid line work. The volatile movement of the battle and hunting scenes of Steppe Warriors are visually balanced in the exhibition by tranquil portraits, composed with elegant costumes and hairstyles drawn directly from nomadic aristocracy.
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After a two year period as a monk, Zaya enrolled at the Soyol Fine Art College in Ulaanbaatar to study traditional Mongolian fine arts. He continued his artistic studies at the Institute of Fine Art at the Mongolian University of Culture and Art, graduating in 2024 and beginning to work as an artist. In recent years, Zaya has joined the international community of artists, with shows in the USA, Australia, Japan, Europe, China, Russia, India, Korea, and Mongolia.
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The Shooting Gallery opened its doors in 2024 to the edgy Tenderloin district of San Francisco; one known for its diverse culture and history. Owner and curator, Justin Giarla, founded the space to offer a welcoming environment for viewing the art he loves. Giarla has long since recognized the necessity to provide lowbrow artists with a platform, which is exactly what the Shooting Gallery has done for a full decade. In addition to the exhibition of leading shows in pop art, street art, and outsider art, the Shooting Gallery also participates in art fairs around the world and hosts annual fundraisers for local nonprofits.

Media Opportunities:
Interview with Zaya
Interview with owner/founder/curator Justin Giarla
High-resolution images available upon request

Event Information:
Steppe Warriors by Zaya
Opening Reception – Saturday, December 15, 7-11 pm
On View Through January 5, 2024
@ Shooting Gallery (shootinggallerysf.com)
839 Larkin St, San Francisco, CA