The author follows the comprehension of the image of the Tatar national poet Gabdulla Tukay (1886–1913) in fine arts and presumes that as with Homer, Dante or Pushkin his genius has become a personification of the spirit of the nation. The fairy tale Shurale – his first major work of letters – has become an inexhaustible source of inspiration for artists. The vast “Tukay’s planet” is reflected in the art of Grigory Zhitkov and Kharis Yusupov; in the brilliant interpretations of Faizrakhman Aminov and Baki Urmanche; in the epic murals of Abrek Abzgildin; in the philosophical and metaphorical high reliefs of Askhan Fatkhutdinov; and in the epochal canvases of Ildar Zaripov and Shamil Shaidullin. The author notes the variety of genres and the technical richness of interpretations in the works of artists of the 1980s-1990s. The spiritual world of Tukay is of much importance for the self-identification of 21-century artists mastering the various types of the national poet’s imagery – from descriptions to metaphors and signs as, for example, in the philosophical triptych by Victor Arshinov entitled “The Poet’s Testament”.
Key words: Gabdulla Tukay, Tatar national poet, the fairy tale Shurale, interpretation of an image, genre versatility, Faizrakhman Aminov, Baki Urmanche, Ildar Zaripov, Shamil Shaidullin, Victor Arshinov.