ArtAsiaPacific: Field Trip Baku

A view of the Baku Bay from atop the Maiden Tower, a 12th-century architecture and UNESCO World Heritage site located in the Old City.

Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, is an urban city of two million people along the shores of the Caspian Sea. The oil-rich city is the scientific, cultural and industrial center of Azerbaijan, where ancient architecture and historic sites can be found alongside modern skyscrapers and multimillion-dollar highrises.

In recent years, the rise in oil prices and revenue has enriched the economy of Azerbaijan, a former Soviet state, allowing it to redevelop the city of Baku at a scale unseen in its history. Thousands of buildings from the Soviet era have been demolished to make way for parks, luxury hotels, business centers and social facilities, and improvements made to the maintenance of the city’s historic sites. Today, Azerbaijan is the production center for 70 percent of the South Caucasus’ economy, with Baku becoming a major tourist destination in the region.

This recent national growth has also had an impact on the nascent contemporary art scene of Azerbaijan. In 2011, artist Aida Mahmudova founded the nonprofit Yarat Contemporary Art Space, whose exhibitions, lectures, projects and workshops now form the core of the local art community’s activities. In March, ArtAsiaPacific was invited by Yarat to experience Baku’s growing art scene, and to attend the opening of the group exhibition “Love Me, Love Me Not” at Heydar Aliyev Center, Baku, a multimillion-dollar cultural museum built in 2012.

Below are some highlights from the trip.

The Muhammad Mosque, an 11th-century architecture in Baku’s Old City, with a view of the Flame Towers (a USD 350 million commercial highrise built in 2012) in the back. All photos by Hanae Ko for ArtAsiaPacific.

Outside view of Yay Gallery, a contemporary art gallery located in the Old City of Baku, Azerbaijan. An initiative of the Yarat Contemporary Art Space, the two-story organization regularly holds exhibitions, lectures, readings, film screenings and artist workshops.

A video projection of X-Event 2.7 According to the Protocol Salives (2009), a performance by French artist and choreographer duo Les Gens d’Uterpan (Annie Vigier and Franck Apertet) at Yay Gallery, 2014.

Exterior view of the building housing Afghan artist Reza Hazare’s studio in Baku.

Afghan artist Reza Hazare at his studio in Baku, showing his surrealist paintings that illustrate everyday Afghan society.

Visitors at the front entrance of the Heydar Aliyev Center, a 619,000-square-foot building in Baku, designed by Iraqi-British architect Zaha Hadid. The center, named after the leader of Soviet-era Azerbaijan from 1969 to 1982, and president of Azerbaijan from 1993 to 2003, was built in 2012.

Interior view of the Heydar Aliyev Center, Baku.

Azerbaijani artist Orkhan Huseynov with his Plexiglas installation Handwork (2012), from the “Fly to Baku” touring exhibition at Heydar Aliyev Center, 2014.

Azerbaijani artist Farid Rasulov with his 2013 installation Untitled #4 (left) from the “Architectural Dichotomy” series. Installation at the “Love Me, Love Me Not” exhibition at Heydar Aliyev Center, 2014.

Interior view of Museum of Modern Art, Baku, which was designed by Azerbaijani painter and sculptor Altai Sadikhzade. The museum mainly displays artworks from the latter half of the 20th century, with focus on modern Azerbaijani art from the 1960s and ’70s.

Where Did You Come From, Where Are You Going?! (2014), iron installation with light projection, by Azerbaijani artist Rashad Alakbarov. Installation from his solo exhibition “Words” at Museum of Modern Art, Baku, 2014.

Hanae Ko is reviews editor at ArtAsiaPacific.

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May 2010

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Field Trip: Baku