VALLEY OF THE DOLLS

As one begins one's "journey" through the exhibition one gets the impression of stumbling into a magical world of a fairy tale frozen in time. There are dolls of all kinds - decorative dolls, conceptual dolls, classical dolls, objets d'art in wonderful clothes, with lifelike emotions, extravagant compositions of worlds of fantasy - a complete illusion of the reality and animation of the objects. Although one does not have the heart to call them objects: they are more like celestial beings, like little people of art who have come down to us from their toy, yet so real heavens. Here we see the sultan's favourite, a soulful and tempting courtesan who, exhausted, flops down on richly embroidered cushions; there we see a girl, with real sadness in her eyes hugging a teddy bear; a strange man invites you to ride with him in a balloon; and at the sight of a voluptuous pomegranate girl one gets a sweet taste in the mouth as though pomegranate seeds have just burst into a thousand fragments; here a clockmaker with a kind and wistful face stands next to his clock and seems to be holding Eternity in his hands.. And throughout the exhibition not only will you not find duplicate pieces - you won't find any that are even similar. They have all been made by hand, all are unique and bear the imprint of their makers. To magical melodies that remind one of the music of Aeolian harps, the whole exhibition is displayed on large screens where beauties and characters from fairy tales again "parade" before us in various poses.

This is the second time the people of Baku and visitors to the capital have had the opportunity to visit an unusual cultural event - the second International Baku Doll Biennale, organized by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, the Museum Centre and the Kukla Art Gallery. It was not without reason that the biennale was entitled "Fusion" because this term has come to us from jazz. It symbolizes eclecticism - a fusion of western and eastern music, ancient and modern instruments, and this title best resembles the exhibits which themselves appeared to be frozen by the music. But in all this mix of styles there is no confusing the individual artists because each of them works in their own unique way and embodies the images close to them.

Artists from 13 countries - Azerbaijan, Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Georgia, Israel, Germany, Belgium, Kazakhstan, Czech Republic, Italy, Latvia and Estonia - took part in the biennale. Azerbaijan was represented by the works of three master artists: the founder of the genre of the artistic doll in the country, Elmira Abbasli; the sculptor and doll artist of 20 years' experience Tamilla Qurbanova, and husband and wife working in modern art, Parviz Huseynov and Irina Gundorina.

Elmira Abbasli: "We reach a new level of spirituality through the artistic doll" 

The work of Elmira xanim [mode of address] Abbasli, the founder of the designer doll in Azerbaijan, is noted, first and foremost, for its attention to detail, as well as the deep spiritual and philosophical meaning imbedded in each composition. And no wonder: the author, who was a member of the USSR Artists Union, now the Azerbaijani Artists Union, is a member of the Russian Professional Artists and was a bronze winner at the second international biennale of folk dolls in Krakow, as well as a diploma winner of many international competitions, has devoted 30 years of her life to the work she loves. She describes her work as eastern, philosophical and full of spirituality. But at the same time Elmira, who was born and bred in Icari Sahar [Icheri Sheher; Old Town] is the creator of 12 images of Old Baku, unique, full of colour and a reflection of the whole cultural, historical, intellectual and spiritual heritage of our country, where every doll is a kind of prototype of a real person in miniature. Elmira creates her compositions in the truly classical manner - "to last for ever", she says. And indeed, apart from its elaborate detail, her work is noted for the quality of the materials. The artist uses the method of hot plastic and works essentially with her hands so as to feel the material and also have a better sense of the interaction between the energy of her hands and the plastic. The filling material of her dolls is of high quality, ecological and natural: cotton, wood and natural hair. All the details of her compositions - dress, accessories, jewellery and even the bases and plinths for the dolls Elmira makes herself because, she says, work cannot truly be considered one's own if some details have been made "elsewhere", by order. "My source of inspiration is the creator," she says, modestly believing that all her images come to her from above and hers are merely the skilled hands that embody them. According to the artist, Azerbaijan, unlike, say, Japan, has no rich doll traditions, and she had to learn everything for herself. She reached the level she has achieved today through a long and difficult path of trial and error, but she has succeeded not only in conveying the "substance" of her exhibits, but also a rich inner world.

Many of Elmira Abbasli's works have long since firmly "established themselves" in the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, in museums and in the private collections of well-known connoisseurs. She says her main aim is not just to demonstrate her dolls to the world but also to show the country's wealth of culture which they symbolize.

Tamilla Qurbanova: "For inspiration you need isolation" 

At first glance the work of Tamilla Qurbanova attracts one because of its simplicity, ethereality, daintiness and a certain coquetry - in general, the indispensable attributes of the true female form. And indeed, her dolls - or rather her dollies - delicate, dainty, charming and subtle - are quintessentially all that is attractive in a woman. It was not by chance that one of her works depicting a soulful beauty who has apparently just woken from the embraces of sleep and is showing the world her open and sweet smile, is entitled: "The awakening of womanhood".

For Tamilla, a sculptor and designer by vocation, a doll master since 1993, the arrival of a new epoch for the artistic doll is evident. "Interest in dolls has increased a great deal now, whereas before we had to work on pure enthusiasm," she says. Despite the fact that images of her dolls lean heavily on classical traditions, Tamilla agrees that recently modern art and the conceptual doll, which is an expression of an idea, have been acquiring particular importance.

As far as ideas are concerned, they are the basis of any creative work, she says. Since the art of the artistic doll has developed a great deal recently, both in the media and the Internet and at exhibitions you can come across a number of images that embody the most varied ideas and concepts. "If you look at and study the creative work of others too much chaos is formed within. Therefore I try to isolate myself from others and from distractions which could in one way or another influence my inspiration. My aim is to create absolutely authentic pieces," the artist says.

The main material that Tamilla works with is self-solidifying plastic. As a designer, she also develops the jewellery part of her compositions and pieces. Besides that, by way of experiment, she often tries out new materials and techniques.

Although every doll and every piece she creates is unique, Tamilla admits with regret that she comes across people who borrow the images she creates in order to make a copy which is significantly inferior to the original. Although, of course, the copy will not have the same value as the original. Tamilla's works are kept at the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, the Azerbaijani Theatre Museum, the State Customs Committee Museum, the private collection of the president of UNESCO and in the possession of the Rostropovich family. Besides this, Tamilla is a master and the author of many portrait dolls. Among the pieces she has created are well-known politicians and celebrities from culture and the arts and a key place is occupied by a portrait doll of Nasiba Zeynalova.

Irina Gundorina: "Steampunk is one of my favourite areas" 

The Parviz Huseynov - Irina Gundorina pairing, which has been operating for 10 years and since 2006 has existed as a brand, has already made its mark in artistic doll making. This duo may be described as truly experimental and a flagship of conceptual art because their work is not just dolls, but imaginary figures and wondrous beings, fantastic beasts and unique mechanisms.  It is not by chance that Huseynov's favourite genre, according to his wife, is steampunk (an area which presupposed the alternative development of civilization via steam engines and balloons), typified by fanciful details of various mechanisms squeezed into the framework of an object of fantasy. At the same time, working in the sphere of conceptual art, the artists are also inventive in both the materials and the way they work. Papier-mache, plastic, odd parts from old watches, old jars and bottles - all this creative junk is transformed in their hands into unique works of art, and lengthy treatment gives them a finished look. Their "distribution of labour" also increases its effectiveness and end result: Irina creates the armatures and basic objects, but the precise reproduction of the details which impart the figures with completion and the basic idea is down to Parviz, an architect by education. The technique itself, or more precisely, the use of various techniques transforms a doll into an objet d'art and the expression of an objective. 

According to Irina, the art of the artistic doll came to us primarily from the West, and later moved to Russia where there are a number of gifted doll makers. In the artist's opinion, in order to develop their talent an artist needs to work closely with the skilled doll-making community: "An artist cannot develop unless he communicates with others," she says. "Alone he stews in his own juice. There are plenty of opportunities now to meet people and exchange experience and advice and there is a great deal of information on the World Wide Web. All this enables an artist to develop." 

The art of the artistic doll, like any form of art, demands that one keeps on one's toes. Dolls are proud objects and they don't stand up well to disregard and neglect. And the creation of such beauty is the result not only of long painstaking work but also love - the love of a parent for their child, an artist to his painting or Pygmalion to Galatea.