An artisan must always be an innovator: choosing and experimenting with new materials, techniques, ornaments, and shapes—but a good artisan must cherish traditions as well.Kyrgyz craftsmen know how to make…

In the picture to the right, we see beautiful Central Asian fabrics with an abr (ikat) pattern that convey the mystical spirit of the Middle Ages, the atmosphere of the…

Within a mere ten years, director Zhanna Isabaeva carved out a firm place for herself in modern Kazakhstani cinema. She has done so all on her own: neither the state…

“Azerbaijani and Central Asian art have a lot to offer the world in terms of discovery,” – says Rose Issa, a renowned curator and writer who has helped to introduce Iranian…

Carpet-weaving is an amazing art with which mankind has been familiar for almost five millennia (the first known nap structures were found among the archaeological remains of ancient Sumer). Carpets…

To most young Kazakhs, the films of Shaken Aimanov are  unknown. Many have never even heard his name. Even Aimanov’s greatest hits – Our Dear Doctor (1957) and The End of…

Uzbekistan’s beautiful architecture fascinates tourists from around the world, but they can not take Gur-Emir with them when they leave. Yet they can fill their suitcases with smaller items: painted…

Olzhas Suleimenov is a poet, literary scholar, public figure, and diplomat. His contribution to the Kazakh culture is hard to overestimateAlongside his legendary book Az i Ya and his staggering poetry,…

Author Rosa Vercoe Rosa Vercoe is a freelance blogger who has recently started her own blog. She was born in Turkmenistan (Mary) but grew up in Kazakhstan (Almaty). Rosa is…

Saule Suleimenova is a contemporary artist based in Almaty, Kazakhstan. She works with a wide range of media: watercolors, wax engraving, painting on newspaper, archival photos painted over urban graffiti,…

Shashmaqam is a Central Asian musical genre typical of Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. It is a refined sort of music, with lyrics derived from Sufi poems. Despite this close relation to Sufi ideas and an overall perception of…