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MOMENTUM AiR
STUDIO RESIDENCY
Gulnur Mukazhanova
8 October – 1 November 2023
STUDIO RESIDENCY PROJECT:
PREPARING FOR THE 25TH SHARJAH ISLAMIC ARTS FESTIVAL
For twenty-five years, the Sharjah Islamic Arts Festival (SIAF) has been a distinctive artistic event. It has reinstated Islamic arts to their global status alongside other beautiful forms of art.
The 25th edition of SIAF affirmed the importance of highlighting Islamic arts through Emirati, Arab, and international contributions, and openness to diverse experiences from all countries worldwide.
Sharjah Islamic Arts Festival contributes to enhancing the presence of Islamic art under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, affirming the importance of arts as a bridge to bring people together and communicate through a unified language of creativity and art.
The 25th Edition was themed ‘Manifestations’, a word laden with profound aesthetic and intellectual significance, open to multiple interpretations varying among artists. Thus, the festival embraced diverse artistic expressions to encapsulate the theme’s vitality through various artistic presentations while preserving the intrinsic authenticity of Islamic arts. Throughout the festival, 132 events took place, including exhibitions, art workshops, and lectures organized by the Department of Culture in collaboration with 18 entities in Sharjah. These include institutions like the House of Wisdom, Arab Photographers’ Union, Photographic Society, Emirates Fine Arts Society, and other cultural venues in Sharjah.
WORK-IN-PROGRESS PHOTOS
ARTIST BIO:
Gulnur Mukazhanova graduated from the Kazakh National Academy of Arts in Almaty (2006), and the Weissensee Art Academy in Berlin, Germany (2013). Her interdisciplinary practice focuses on textile art, but also encompasses photography, video, installation, and sculpture. Mukazhanova’s art is a confrontation of two different cultures but also a dialogue between them. From her Central Asian roots she keeps a strong physical relation to traditional materials that are not only used for their aesthetics but have a symbolic and historic meaning. Mukazhanova’s work is influenced by Kazakh textile traditions, with felt and lurex fabrics as her most important materials. She addresses identity problems and the transformations of traditional values of her culture in the age of globalisation. Mukazhanova’s works are her reflection upon current kazakh society. They aim to critically illuminate the tensions between the individual, the post nomadic developed identity, and the alienation wrought by global information and media culture.
Mukazhanova has participated in international biennales such as: A Time for Dreams, IV Moscow International Biennale of Young Art, Moscow, (2014); and the Krasnoyarsk Biennale, Russia (2015). In 2018 she participated with Iron Woman in the groundbreaking exhibition Bread & Roses: Four Generations of Kazakh Women Artists, at MOMENTUM, Berlin. In 2022, Mukazhanova participated in the prestigious Artist Residency program at CHAT – Centre for Heritage Arts & Textile, in Hong Kong. Selected recent exhibitions include: Mimosa Haus, London, UK (2022); Davra Art Collective, Dokumenta XV, Kassel, Germany (2022); Kulturforum Ansbach, Germany (2021); Asia Now, Paris, France (2022, 2021, 2019); MOMENTUM, Berlin, Germany (2022, 2021,2018); Aspan Gallery, Almaty, Kazakhstan (2018); Wapping Power Station, London, UK (2018); National Museum, Astana, Kazakhstan; (2017); Daegu Art Factory, Daegu, South Korea (2017); Artwin Gallery, Moscow, Russia (2016); HWK Leipzig, Germany (2013); Freies Museum, Berlin, Germany (2013); Tengri-Umai Gallery, Almaty, Kazakhstan (2010), amongst many others. Her work is held in international collections, including: MOMENTUM, Fondazione 107, Turin, Italy; Krasnoyarsk Museum, Russia; La Metive, Moutier-d’Àhun, France.
EXHIBITION PHOTOS
FROM THE 25TH SHARJAH ISLAMIC ARTS FESTIVAL
