Niyaz Najafov
b. 1968 in Baku
He lives and works in Baku and Paris
Niyaz Najafov graduated from Baku Technical School of Physical Culture in 1985 and has been involved in professional sports for most of his life. Najafov started drawing in childhood, but only took up painting in 2003, henceforth enjoying a successful career in art. His works are now exhibited in the leading galleries of Baku. In 2009, Najafov represented Azerbaijan at the Venice Biennale.
Najafov’s star appeared in the firmament of Azerbaijani art midway through the last decade. The works of this original artist have been widely exhibited abroad, (including in Russia, the USA, Germany and Denmark), and have been acquired by museums and private collectors at home and abroad. In 2009 Najafov became one of the artists representing Azerbaijan at the Venice Biennale. Two of his works were purchased there by the renowned collector Alberto Sandretti.
Regardless of the subject, Najafov’s works draw in the eye magnetically, even though the images themselves are far from optimistic. A number of his works can also be considered as caricatures. This relationship between painting and drawing, a symbiotic combination of the epic oil painting tradition and the lighthearted caricature of drawing, is one recognizable feature of his artistic style. Sometimes it is blatant satire while at other times it is merely a subtle hidden aspect. The figures portrayed in his paintings are not so much actual characters, but rather archetypes, in which someone, perhaps, might recognise themselves.
Selected Exhibitons
2012
Fly to Baku: Contemporary Art from Azerbaijan, Philips de Pury & Company, London, UK
2011
Foreword - Contemporary art exhibition organized by YARAT! Contemporary Art Space, Baku, Azerbaijan
London Art Fair, Gazelli Art House, London, UK
Terres de Pensee, Brissot Gallery, Paris, France
LabArt, Melun, France
Avant Première, IP Gallery, Paris, France.
2010
Year of Russia in France, Brissot Gallery, Paris, France
Niyaz-Daria, Vivienne Gallery, Paris, France
Cairo International Biennale, Cairo, Egypt
Cite des Arts International, Moscow, Russia
Vision Solidaires, Brissot Gallery, Paris, France
2009
53rd Venice Biennale of Contemporary Art, Venice, Italy
Bakunlimited, Basel, Switzerland
2008
Year of Azerbaijan in Germany, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Berlin, Germany
Singverdson Bo Gallery, Rodby, Denmark
2007
5+, Museum Centre, Baku, Azerbaijan
Kassel Art Fair, Kassel, Germany
2006
Geneva, U .N.O, Geneva, Switzerland
2005
Man and Woman, Museum Centre, Baku, Azerbaijan
