BAKU SPEAKING!

The Museum of Painting of Azerbaijan unveiled yet another interesting exhibition covering a period of 1900-1940s in Baku. What was fine art then, the life of the city, country, and individuals? The captured moments of the life of a single city in four decades is a picturesque chronology of events: the first oil boom, revolution, everyday Soviet life, Baku, and its people.

Special items

The research of Zohra Mammadova, who made a time travel into the past of the Azerbaijani school of fine art, yielded stunning results giving us a chance to immerse in the works of local artists Ismayil Akhundov, Azim Azimzadeh, Latif Feyzullayev, Mikhail Gerasimov, Hasan Hagverdiyev, Ali-bey Huseynzadeh, Bahruz Kengerli and many others. What is so special about these works? Everything! Professionalism in drawing the chronicles of the everyday life of people who had built our common destiny, archival documents, letters, sketches, handwritten texts by Jafar Jabbarly, rare photographs of the beginning of the last century. In a word, the entire selection of exhibits consisting of art paintings and archival documents, creates a very impressive image of the past four decades combined under an eloquent title Baku Speaking. 1900-1940. As if Baku is indeed speaking to us from the past. It speaks clearly, eloquently, emotionally and loudly. We must hear the voices of those who perpetuated in their canvases the moments of a short 40-year life of the city.

Ali-bey Huseynzadeh

Portrait of Sheikh al-Islam (1900). A grey-bearded old man in a turban looks past us aside. The look of his living eyes reveals a very confident, strong-willed, strict and energetic character. He knows exactly where and how to search for Truth. He knows exactly which way to go towards this goal. The perfection of artistic technique used by the artist is amazing. Look at the face of the sheikh. His turban and beard are worn out; what an expressive face! This is not only the highest class of mastery but also an aesthetic pleasure from the work of a master who knows how to see the human soul. His other work is The childhood of Salim Turan. We do not know the details of life of the boy in a light sweater. We can assume that at that time he was 6-7 years old. We do not know what happened to the boy in 1917. But he looks fine on the portrait with pink acacia blooms seen from the window, a stone fence, gates, and then another house across the street. The street, a house on the other side of the street, blooming acacia, a shrub with blue flowers, a bucket with blackberries behind the boy create a sense of harmonious and happy life. There is an inscription on the bucket written in Arabic alphabet: perhaps it is the artist’s message to eternity...

Bahruz Kengerli

Portrait of a Russian language teacher Mirza Zamanov (1917). Look at the facial expression of a man who has dedicated himself to children. Look at his clothes. The artist so carefully and masterfully textured the fabric that it seems real. As if Mirza Zamanov is going to turn his head towards us, get up from his chair, fasten the buttons of his coat to make a polite bow.

Salam Salamzadeh

Opening of MTS (1929). The artist captured a moment in the life of rural residents during the period of collectivisation. Men and women discuss on equal terms the construction of the machine and tractor station (MTS), which played an instrumental role in any collective farm (kolkhoz) of the Soviet period. We can see hot debates ongoing in the meeting. It seems the elders do not really believe in the speaker, who argues that mechanisation of the collective farm is an important part of progress. A moment of life, which is now part of a long gone and forgotten past.

Mikhail Gerasimov

A Boy (1930). A bright sunny day with midday shadows. A thin figure of a boy from the back. It feels hot. Hot air, slightly dulled foliage of the tree’s spreading crown and warm roughness of the branches on which the boy laid his hands. It is summer! Our Absheron summer! Its rhythms have not changed at all...

Azim Azimzadeh

Azerbaijani women studying in madrassa (1935-1938). Is there any Bakuvite who does not know this work of the artist? But it is a pleasure to see once again the original works of the master, who with photographic accuracy captured not only the details of ethnic features of the women but also the their characters, as well as dramatic, comedic and everyday subjects. Perhaps that is why Azimzadeh's works are so often addressed and used in films and theatre performances. Azimzadeh was also known for his contributions to the art of graphics, caricature, poster and theatre painting, designing performances for the Baku Caricature Theatre and the Azerbaijan Drama Theatre. These works are widely represented at the State Museum of Theatre History. The exhibition presents several works of the master: a few from the series Characters of Old Baku, genre paintings A Man Beating His Wife, Baiting Dogs, etc. But no matter how much one analyses the works of Azimzadeh, they still draw attention, they are still attractive. As if a special magnetic force pulls one back to these canvases. At the Baku Speaking, you will repeatedly feel yourself in the role of an interlocutor communicating with the artist.

Hasan Hagverdiyev

Portrait of Azim Azimzadeh (1938-1939). Drawn five years before the artist passed, the portrait conveys in smallest details the inner state of mind of Azimzadeh: his tight lips and an ironic gaze in his eyes looking aside. It seems that he is about to say something or quote. He holds a book in his right hand and has an order on his chest. We know that Azimzadeh was the first and only artist in Azerbaijan awarded the Order of Honour in 1927. Hasan Hagverdiyev preserved for next generations the identity of a person who is part of the history of his people as a creator and as a citizen.

Taghi Taghiyev

Portrait of a Woman (1938). A calm affectionate look with a lot of love and understanding of life. Exhausted hands, a dark scarf on her head, grey hair hanging down from under a scarf... We do not know her name. We do not know if she is a homemaker or works somewhere. But we understand that this Woman is no different than all other mothers and grandmothers around the world.

Ogtay Sadikhzadeh

Stroll (1939). A routine Soviet weekend. Somewhere in the square of a working class area. Perhaps Villa Petrolea?! A group of women and men in beautiful weekend clothes are dancing. Park subculture was an integral part of the Soviet era with its peaceful passage of time. To the right is an accordion player. He is also an integral part of this culture. On the terrace, we can see a group of people watching the dancers with interest and pleasure.

The Communist Street (1941). It is the time when trams were running along the street now called Istiglaliyyat (formerly Nikolayevskaya, Parliamentary street). One of the oldest central streets of Baku is easily recognisable even today. The artist captured a truly historical moment. Perhaps it is June 22^nd. As if people are frozen on both sides of the street listening to the speakers hanging on pillars. A moment of history and a whole human life.

Documentaries

This section presents a set of very unique and well-preserved items, including letters, photographs (one of them showing young Azim Azimzadeh), handwritten works by Jafar Jabbarly, letters that poetess Umgulsum Sadikhzadeh (mother of Ogtay Sadikhzadeh) wrote to her children from the Bayil prison, small, like postcards, artistic miniatures by Bahruz Kengerli and many more. Our guide was Ramazan Babayev, who has generously and lovingly shared with us information about the exhibition. "Baku Speaking. 1900-1940" will be open until April 12, 2020. Do not wait and go see it today! It is really worth it! You will definitely enjoy touching high art and connecting with Time, which completely belongs to past generations, who, like our ancestors, have their own secrets and truth.