ARTIM: MƏHƏLLƏ SOLO EXHIBITION

YARAT Contemporary Art Space is pleased to announce the exhibition “Məhəllə” by the Ajam Media Collective at ARTIM Project Space

ARTIM project space features an exhibition related to the demolition of Sovietsky area in Baku and the disappearing neighborhood. The works explore themes such as nostalgia, family history, the social biography of things, displacement, the archaeology of ruins, memory and illusion. 

A “məhəllə”, or a traditional neighborhood or quarter, was the main social unit for people in cities across the Middle East, Caucasus, and Central Asia. For hundreds of years people worked, celebrated births and weddings, buried their loved ones, resolved conflicts, and formed collective identities in these spaces. In Baku, these spaces of everyday life are still present, but they are slowly disappearing due to new visions of an ideal public space.

Sovetski was the quintessential “məhəllə”. Originally sheltering lower-income families who worked in Baku’s booming oil fields during the mid-19th century, Sovetsky soon became a bustling neighborhood, consisting of approximately 50,000 residents, and over 200 historic sites such as old homes, baths, and places of worship. In 2014, demolitions of the neighborhood began in order to build a public park as part of a city-wide beautification initiative. 

“Ajam” Media Collective is a group of activists, scholars, journalists, and artists that focus on politics and culture in Iran, the Caucasus, Central Asia, and South Asia. Beginning as an online platform practice in 2011, “Ajam”MC has since ventured into documentary filmmaking, archival practice, and music production.

Chinara Majidova (b.1989, Baku) graduated from the International Law Department of Baku State University in 2010 working now as a writer, painter and video artist. From 2016, she worked as a photojournalist and writer with Ajam Media Collective. The collective joined her “Mehelle” project which covers the demolishing of Sovetski, a project she started because of her personal connection with the neighborhood having grow up visiting her family there. 

About ARTIM 

ARTIM is directed at young Azerbaijani artists with an intention to support and encourage emergent talent to grow. The program has a designated exhibition space in Icheri Sheher that was conceived as a platform for experimenting and professionally showcasing art. Artworks resulting from the program are exhibited at the ARTIM Project Space, Baku. 

Opening Date: 26 May, 2018

Time: 7 pm

Address: ARTIM Project Space Old City (Icherisheher) Boyuk Gala Street 30, 001A 

Admission is free

ARTIM Project Space features a performance by the brothers Fikret and Hikmet Khojeseni in the folk rap tradition of Meykhana with spoken lyrics, in rhyme and verse, to a synthesized beat improvising on a particular subject.

Meykhana Performance: June 13, 2018
Time: 7 pm

Address: ARTIM Project Space Old City (Icherisheher) Boyuk Gala Street 30, 001A 

Admission is free

Exhibition dates: 26 May – 8 June, 2018

Working hours: Tuesday – Sunday, 12 pm – 8pm

For more information: +994125051414