About

Publications

Knowledge Database

Traditional and contemporary art of Kazakhstan

A Virtual Journey into the World of Kazakhstan’s Artistic Heritage

This Web Gallery presents the diversity of artistic practices in Kazakhstan, reflecting the continuity of cultural traditions and the dynamic development of contemporary creative processes. The virtual exhibition features works based on national images, symbols, and themes, as well as artworks by contemporary artists who reinterpret the country’s cultural heritage through contemporary artistic forms, expressive means, and modern technologies.

The selected works demonstrate the relationship between traditional and contemporary art, revealing the distinctive features of the national worldview, cultural identity, and cultural meanings. The presented materials allow viewers to trace how elements of historical and cultural heritage are reflected in contemporary artistic practice, while maintaining their significance and relevance in an increasingly globalized world.

The Web Gallery is aimed at promoting Kazakhstan’s artistic heritage, expanding public access to works of art, and fostering a lasting interest in national culture and art among a wide audience.

From the series ‘Kazakh Chronicle’. Three Brides, 2015. Acrylic, print on canvas. From the artist’s personal archive

Suleimenova Saule

Сулейменова Сауле. Из серии «Казахская хроника». Три невесты, 2015 г. Акрил, принт на холсте. Из личного архива художницы

The work is based on an archival photograph from the late 19th–early 20th century, a characteristic feature of Saule Suleimenova’s ‘Kazakh Chronicle’ series. The composition is frontal: three female figures form a stable, symmetrical structure.The focus is on the images of the brides wearing the saukele — a traditional wedding headdress symbolising social status and a young woman’s transition to a new stage of life. The artist conveys not external ornamentation, but the inner concentration and dignity of the figures; their faces take on an almost iconographic quality.The colour scheme is rendered in grey-beige, ochre and smoky tones, creating the effect of an old, faded photograph and a sense of temporal distance. The combination of painting and photographic print blurs the boundary between archival document and contemporary art.