ARTIST OF ETERNITY

Chingiz Abbasov is an Azerbaijani artist known for his free, expressive style of painting and unique combination of the vivid, colourful approach of the Azerbaijani school of painting and the traditions of Western realism. Since the 1990s Abbasov has exhibited his works in solo and group exhibitions, including in Finland, the US, the Gabala International Art Exhibition in Azerbaijan, ArtExpo in New York, the Florence Biennial in Italy, as well as in collaboration with the Laguna Beach Gallery in California. His paintings can be found in many private and public collections around the world, including in the Reinhold Wurth Museum of Finland.

Today Chingiz ABBASOV is preparing for his solo exhibition in Baku, which will feature one of his major paintings, Thirty Years and 44 Days dedicated to Garabagh, where the artist is originally from. Despite his multicultural personality and fascination with global art, his work demonstrates an inextricable link with his national cultural origins.

"Everything we see and experience in life leaves an indelible mark in our perception, thoughts and, accordingly, in our works. Do you feel the mix of different cultures in your works?"

"The environment that surrounds us definitely influences every artist's work. I am no exception. By absorbing the rich cultural heritage of past centuries and the contemporary art of Europe and America, I have acquired a wide set of technical skills, which I regularly apply in my art. I have spent a considerable time studying the culture and environment of the most beautiful places on our planet. After literally walking over every inch of Florence, I studied all the famous works of this city of Renaissance. In different times, I have also shown interest in New York, Austria, Germany and many other cities and countries."

"You live between Finland and the US. In your interviews you say that this is because your future wife was Finnish and worked in the US. What difficulties did you have during your  creative and personal adaptation period? "

"When we married, I moved to California, and I naturally wanted to continue making art and exhibiting my works in galleries there. Fortunately, I soon found a gallery in Laguna Beach. This place is known for the number of art galleries. There was a lot of interest in my woks, and I soon started exhibiting them. One of my most memorable solo exhibitions was the Twins exhibition dedicated to my newly born twins, Sarah and Emil.

“Unfortunately, English was not my favourite subject at school. That’s why one of the difficulties I faced in the US was the language barrier. But I solved it quickly. In general, adjusting to the life in the US was easy. Also thanks to the openness and friendliness of Americans, who are easy to find a common language with. I got a Green Card, which gives me the right for permanent residence in the US as an artist.

As for Finland, where we moved later for family reasons, things were somewhat different. Unlike Americans, Finns are introverts by nature. But when you get closer, they can become your life-long loyal friends. My first exhibition in Finland right after I graduated from the St. Petersburg Academy of Fine Arts was a success. But the things were different when I started my artistic career here. I have visited many galleries but all of them refused my application saying that my pictures were good, but they only worked with the Finnish artists. No matter how good was my Finnish, it was difficult to get into the closed world of the Finnish art.”

"But there is always light at the end of a tunnel..."

"That light was a woman art dealer who became interested in my work. After a while, other art dealers and gallery representatives found out that she was successfully selling my paintings and started contacting me. Today the number of my works purchased in Finland reaches hundreds. This has made me somewhat popular there. I was the only Azerbaijani living in Finland who was invited by President Tarja Halonen to a dinner party in honour of the arrival of President Ilham Aliyev and his wife Mehriban Aliyeva. "

"Your works are in the personal collection of the President of Finland and in the Reinhold Wurth Museum Collection (Madonna of the 21st Century). How would you describe your audience?"

"I have made a portrait of the NHL legend Teemu Selianne, portraits of the head of the Finnish bank and famous personalities in Azerbaijan. As I said, many of my works have been acquired in Finland. There are many works sold in the US and several European countries. I have worked with galleries in California, Finland and Sweden. I participated in the Florence Biennial and Art Expo in New York. Now in Finland I am preparing a series of works to be presented in one of the European countries. To be honest, I do not necessarily make my works with exhibiting or selling in mind. I am an artist. My job is to express my feelings, thoughts and mood in a picture. Who is my audience? I get letters from different people who have owned my works or got them recently: pensioners, young couples, people from different social backgrounds. What they all have in common is their love of art."

"A woman is a regular character in a number of your works, like in Madonna of the 21st Century. How would you describe the Madonna of today? What is she like? Is she a beauty icon, or does she have any other extraordinary qualities?"

"You're right. Women are the main theme in many of my paintings. For me, any mother who loves her child and is ready to do anything for her child is Madonna. As to the concept of beauty and its perception, it's probably something individual to everyone."

"Your paintings are known for their bright colours that give rise to certain feelings. Which is closer to you—conveying positive or negative emotions? "

"I’d say that an artist's perception of the world through colours and the transfer of this perception to the canvas takes place at the level of subconscious, of various sensations. It is difficult to express through words, but it is this feeling that is transmitted to the viewer. A picture does not need to be understood, it is perceived on a sensual level. That is why I find it hard to say why red or some other colour has always been dominant in some of my works. When I was a student in St. Petersburg, I predominantly opted for violet. When you create a painting, you put in some energy into it, and that energy is transferred to the viewer. The energy that I put into my works is my love for the subject I have tried to depict on canvas. That's what I want to convey to my viewers. So I would say that my paintings raise positive emotions."

"Do you have a work you wouldn't want to part with?"

"I have several of them. I don’t part with them for different reasons. But in general, when I show my paintings and see that people like them, I am already satisfied because I am able to evoke their emotions and love."

"Your education at the Azim Azimzade Art School and the Stieglitz Academy of Art and Industry in St. Petersburg has played an instrumental role in shaping you as an artist..."

"The Azimzadeh school has been alma mater for all the Azerbaijani artists. I was one of them. It gave me a good fundamental knowledge of drawing, painting and composition. As to the Stieglitz Academy, it helped me raise my knowledge and skills to a completely new level. This applies both to the basic disciplines of drawing and to painting, composition and their transformation into the language of monumental art."

"What direction did you chose in the end?"

"My works can be classified as representational, or figurative art. The range is very wide, from classical to contemporary modern. But it is based on the reproduction of real, recognisable objects. For me, the image of reality is just a starting point through which I express my feelings and sensations. Depending on my objective, the interpretation of reality can range from academic classics to experimental innovations."

"Can you tell us about your book Magnificent Baku, which is now part of the Library of Congress?"

"I have long cherished the idea of creating works as a tribute to my lovely Baku.  The book focuses on the historical centre of Icherisheher, then the focus shifts onto the modern appearance of the city showing the diversity of our native land in its entirety. A foreword to the book was written by two Azerbaijani scholars—the late Farid Alakbarli, one of the few scholars in the world who conducted historical research in the Vatican library, and Murad Ismayilov, a doctor of sociology at Cambridge. I think their foreword was enough to give the readers an idea of Baku. The book is published as an album, with the reproductions of my pictures. My purpose was to help Americans learn about my city and country through art. Besides the Library of Congress, the book is also available at the Cambridge Library, embassy and consulate of Azerbaijan to the US. A few hundred Americans have it already. In Azerbaijan, it is available in the M. F. Akhundov Library and the library of the ADA University."

"The success of the book requires a sequel..."

"Initially I had the idea of publishing books on each region of Azerbaijan and then exhibiting them in well-known book chains in Europe and the US. I have already collected materials on Shamkir and Gadabay with their amazing landscapes and historical monuments. I very much want to make such a series on Garabagh. Of course, it requires time and concentration exclusively on this project. I hope I can make this true in the future."

"When portraying Baku, have you wanted to add or remove some details to the architectural structure of the city?"

"I love Baku as it is: ancient and dynamically developing. Of course, I would like Baku to get rid of the faceless typical buildings of the Soviet period. They are completely outdated. When I was making a series of works about Baku I was interested in everything: from the general view of the city to the architectural details of buildings. The objective was to use colours to express the state of the city, its mood - be it day, dusk or night."

"In which part of the city did you spend your childhood? What do you remember of that period in your life?"

"I spent the first years of my life in Icherisheher, in the house my great-grandfather. Then we moved uptown, where my parents—teachers at the Polytechnic Institute—were given an apartment. I had a carefree and happy childhood: my parents, grandparents, brothers, numerous relatives, friends in the yard, at school, favourite teachers, the sea, the sun, the summer house, Novruz, New Year, my hometown and my favourite pastime—drawing. This is the associative series of my childhood...  "

"What about your first artistic memory. What impressed and overwhelmed you in your childhood?"

"I remember seeing an old painting in the Art Museum in Baku. It was a scene with gladiators. I don't remember who painted it. You can probably still see it in the museum. I was amazed how large the painting was. Both the people and animals on the picture, everything was very realistic and vividly painted. It was my first introduction to the world of art."

"Tell us about your upcoming exhibition in Baku..."

"I have spent most of the last few years in Baku—painting and designing bas-reliefs. I was in Azerbaijan during the Second Garabagh War. As with all the nation, every minute, every second of this sacred war passed through my heart: moments of joy when our army advanced, as well as the sad moments every time we heard about the casualties. Unfortunately, my father, who is a native of Shusha, could not live to our victory. But my mother saw the liberation of her father's village, Dashkesan in Jabrayil, and my mother's city of Shusha. A few days after the victory, she died. Then I decided to express all my feelings and words that I could not express in one large-scale monumental painting dedicated to the history of Garabagh, starting from the First Garabagh War till our victory in the second one. Grief over the loss of my beloved mother, pain for our fallen soldiers and officers, pride for our people, our Supreme Commander-in-Chief... I wanted to reflect all those feelings in a single painting. On August 8, in my studio in Shuvalan, I began painting this huge—10 meters by 4 meters—canvas. I named it Thirty Years and 44 Days. There are more than 80 characters in the painting. Twenty-two of them are portraits. And I want to show it to my nation. Of course, there must be a proper venue for such a huge painting—no gallery will be able to exhibit it. But I'm sure it will find its rightful place. Thousands of people will see it. I have also produced a video of the painting which you can view on my YouTube channel, Abassov art. As far as I can see from the comments, it’s been received enormously well."

"What do you miss when you think of Azerbaijan abroad?"

"I always miss Azerbaijan, no matter where I am! I miss my family, friends, people, our speech, listening to mugham on the radio, our delicious food, smells and noises. All this is mine! Native! It is all a part of me."