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September 10, 2019

2nd Nasimi – Poetry, Art and Morality Festival’s programme is disclosed

A number of novelties are expected at the Nasimi-Poetry, Art and Morality Festival, to be held from September 28th to October 1st, with the organizational support of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and the Culture Ministry.

 

In the framework of the festival, to be organized for the second time, some 30 events are scheduled to take place in Baku and Shamakhy, where the poet was born.

 

A number of researchers and critics of poetry are going to comment, for the first time, on selected ghazals of Nasimi, to be followed by discussions over these comments. Over 10 authors from Azerbaijan, Russia, Iran, Turkey and Egypt will present their interpretations of the ghazals “But I am a dervish, a poor, and padishahi-alem” (“Mən ki, dərvişəm, fəqirəm, padişahi-aləməm”). Internationally-renowned researchers of Nasimi creativity, poets, scholars and philosophers will deliver lectures. In their lectures, Russian psychologist Aleksey Sytnikov, researcher from the USA Alan Godlas, Italian poet David Rondoni, Azerbaijani decent, philosopher and artist living in the Great Britain Zeygam Azizov will draw a parallel between the Nasimi philosophy and different theories and concepts related to the past and the present. Presentation of books by German scholar and renowned researcher of Nasimi Michael Hess and Azerbaijani researcher living in the Great Britain Orkhan Mirgasymov about Nasimi and Hurufism will take place in the framework of the festival. At this year’s festival, demonstration of films awarded famous international SIGNUS Prize on interreligious dialogue will take place. Mutual understanding and friendship between people of different faiths, cultures and lifestyles were reflected in the film “The Other Face of Hope” by Finnish director Aki Kaurismeki.

 

On September 28th, the 1st “Folk Art” Baku International Traditional Craftsmanship Festival too will get underway, in the framework of the series of events, with joint organizational support of the “Icherisheher” State History and Architecture Reserve Department and the Research Centre For Islamic History, Art and Culture (IRCICA). 

 

A social and cultural project called “Formation of Hope” will also be implemented in the framework of the festival, with participation of inhabitants and graduates of children’s homes and boarding schools. 30 participants involved in the design courses in the framework of the project expressed their dreams through pictures, and then their works were copied onto T-shirts. Demonstration and sale of these T-shirts will be arranged in the framework of the project. The project aims at developing creative abilities of inhabitants and graduates of children’s homes and boarding schools, and ensure their employment.

 

A series of exhibitions are going to take place in the festival days in Baku and Shamakhy: Works by 10 artists and sculptors from Azerbaijan, Turkey, France and Uzbekistan will be displayed at the exhibition “Irfani secrets” to be inaugurated on September 28 at the Shirvanshahs Palace in Baku. Examples of video art, graphics, installation and kinetic objects dedicated to spiritual life and evolution of spirit will be presented in an exposition covering the palace’s territory.

 

On September 30, the 4th International Sculpture Symposium “Music in Stone” will be launched at the “Gala” Archaeology and Ethnography Museum Complex, while the 8th International Exhibition “From Waste to Art” will be inaugurated at “Gala” State History and Ethnography Reserve.

 

Open presentation of the art project “Talking Walls”, comprised of paintings on the walls of the abandoned industrial warehouse in Gala settlement, will take place. In the framework of this project, works created in the genre of “urban/street art” by artists from Azerbaijan, Brazil, South Africa, Netherlands and France, and a wall picture based on pictures of creative children from Buzovna and Mardakan settlements will also be demonstrated. A personal exhibition of renowned Turkish artist Ahmet Guneştekin will be arranged in the framework of the festival. The artist’s famous work “Immortality Room” too will be demonstrated at the exhibition. To be inaugurated on October 1st, the exhibition will continue until March 31, 2020. An exhibition will be opened also in Shamakhy district on the manuscripts “Shamakhy Anthology” (1468, the British Museum, London). Demonstrating Shamakhy city’s being a cultural hub in the 15th century and existence of a high book culture here, this collection of poems is one of the most beautiful treasures of Azerbaijan’s miniature art. Miniatures in manuscript will be presented at the exhibition through various techniques and methods. Inauguration of a modern art installation dedicated to Imadeddin Nasimi will also take place in Shamakhy. Author of the work, made of light metal parts, is Rashad Alakbarov.

 

Results of a series of early announced competitions will be disclosed in the framework of the festival: The final exhibition of the Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum dedicated to the master of word will be opened. Carpets woven on the basis of 3 works - winners of the competition, and carpet sketches chosen by the jury among the works presented will be demonstrated. Results of the Best Poetic Work competition in the spirit of Nasimi, or resembling his poems, announced by the Culture Ministry’s project “Word” among young poets, will also be disclosed. Music programmes and plays praising search of morality and dialogue between religions and cultures to be performed by art figures and groups of various countries will also be presented in the framework of the festival. In these programmes, spiritual and modern music pieces related to different time periods will be performed, and dances expressing equality and togetherness of people with physical disabilities demonstrated.

 

Ensemble “Horizonte” from Germany, “Zahra” Orchestra from Afghanistan, Canada’s “Clara Furey” Dance Group, “Candono” and “Lost Dog” Dance Group of the Great Britain, “Tallinn Boys Choir” from Estonia, and Italy’s “Dudu Tassa & Kuwaitis” Group will present interesting programmes in the framework of the festival.


On September 29, People’s Artist Nazaket Teymurova will give a concert comprised of mughams on the basis of Nasimi’s poems in Meysari village of Shamakhy. On the same day, joint performances of renowned jazz musician of Azerbaijan Salman Gambarov, together with Michel Gaudar from France (serpent player), Margriet Buchberger from Germany (baroque style singer) and Woo Wey from China (chang player) will be presented at the State Philharmonic of Azerbaijan. An evening of poetry will be held on September 30 at the Maksud Ibrahimbeyov Creativity Centre in the framework of the festival. On the same day, demonstration of the play “Agonizing Heart” by Huijin Theatre of China’s Anhui province will be shown at the Opera and Ballet Theatre. In the traditional 18th century style, the play incorporate the theatre art and music, as well as elements of acrobatics and pantomime.

 

The Festival’s closing ceremony will take place at the Heydar Aliyev Centre on October 1st. Masters of art from Azerbaijan, as well as performers of traditional music from the USA, Turkey, Iran, Jordan and Morocco will participate in the programme.

 

The Festival aims at studying and popularizing the creativity of great Azerbaijani poet and thinker Imadeddin Nasimi (1369-1417) , and tracing his thoughts in the contemporary era, which was for the first time held in 2018.

 

This festival coincides with the poet’s 650th birthday. Following the Resolution of President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, the year 2019 was declared the “Nasimi Year”, to celebrate his 650th anniversary.

 

To become familiarized with the programme of the Nasimi Festival, please use the following link:

 

https://nasimifestival.live/az/program/