The museum was opened in 1977. The collection of paintings was presented by the Picture Gallery of Astrakhan.

    The museum fund is represented by not only works of modern Kalmyk artists, but unique collections of iconstanka and Buddhist sculptures of North-Buddhist pantheon. The museum is proud of paintings of classics of Russian art and West-European arts. There are also works of foreign East with Chinese and Japanese exgravings and works of decorative-applied arts of countries of Central and South-Eastern Asia. The thematic circle of exhibitions is wide: " Fine art of Kalmykia 18 - 20 th. ", " V.Favorskiy and Kalmyk heroic epos " Dzangar "," Memory of Domestic war 1812г. "," Kalmykia in Russian fine art "," To 390-летию of voluntary entry of the Kalmyk people in structure of Russia. A history of the people in fine art " etc. The exhibition activity of a museum is closely connected to art life of cities of region: by Rostov - on - Don, Stavropol, Volgograd, Makhachkala, Astrakhan, Krasnodarom