One of the exhibitions at the capital’s Expo Center featured an original artwork made using needle-felting techniques.Against the expressive dark background that highlights a romantic mood are the soft contours of the waterfront German town of Greifswald in the evening with lonely boats, a bright moon reflecting in the mirror-still surface, and gleams of lighted windows...
It is entitled The Story of Love’.Decorator Gulya Kurbanova, the creator of the handcrafted piece, explains that the poetic scene is the fond memory of an unexpected love confession.
That is why the work is literally imbued with romance and conveys a diverse array of meanings.Gulya Kurbanova is a biologist by profession, and what is more she has a Ph.
D.in Biology.She followed in the footsteps of her mother.Gulya Mailievna is keenly interested in research work.She regards Professors Maral Bazarovna Amanova, Maya Gaipovna Nepesova, and Margarita Grantovna Mushkambarova as a shining example of women in science, and her inspirational role models.
It was an incident that helped her to dramatically change her profession and reveal her artistic talent. - Once, Gulya tells, I visited an exhibition of works by a Japanese artist in Belarus. “There are no people who cannot draw, - the artist from the Land of the Rising Sun told visitors, - but there are people, who simply do not allow themselves to do it.” The words left such a deep impression on me that as soon as I returned home that day, I dipped a paintbrush in drawing ink and let it dance’ on a blank sheet of paper.
A Japanese-style chrysanthemum appeared on the sheet.Then I took another sheet and drew cherry blossom (sakura), then cranes, and so on.The master class I had attended as part of the exhibition was particularly helpful.
Friends of my son, Alan, took all the drawings for themselves at once, and I realized that my first step on the road was successful.When I learned that the felt picture took second place in the exhibition-cum-competition, organized by the Embassy of Germany in Turkmenistan, I felt elated and inspired.
Six months of painstaking work, during which I felt pieces of wool together with a special, barbed felting needle to get a 3D effect, were well worth the effort and paid off.
This aroused a strong desire to create at any hour.My life called up associations with climbing up the ladder with each step leading to new discoveries, meetings, events...
I did not have art education, but my grandfather Baili Sharapov was a good example for me.Although he dedicated his life to the Caspian Sea, it did not stop him from creating one of the first themed carpets.
In 1925, he made a sketch for a portrait of Lenin, and then my grandmother used it to weave the carpet.This work of high artistic merit is now on exhibit at the National Turkmen Carpet Museum.
I tried my hand at ribbon embroidery, making dolls and plaster of Paris figurines, and decorative, watercolor and acrylic painting.While I gave up some of these crafts, I succeeded in the others, for example, ceramic painting.
Almost all of my many hand-painted plates found their admirers.Despite her craft activities, Gulya Kurbanova still remains a biologist at heart.It can be even seen in her hand-painted plates and stones.
They feature various insects, rather than flowers or sentimental pictures. “My goal, she says, is to instill in people an affectionate and considerate attitude towards rare and endangered animals, including insects.
This makes me feel like a volunteer, promoting environmental values.” An exhibition at the French Cultural Center presented plates hand-painted by Gulya Mailievna that depicted birds, wild rams, and leopards with design motifs imitating those of archeological artifacts.
Gulya Mailievna has a picture that has never been exhibited before and it is even untitled.It shows four birds walking the same way with the fifth one following the opposite direction against the bright yellow background.
With the seemingly simple narrative content, the picture communicates a philosophical message which can be interpreted differently by viewers.Some may think it is dedicated to brave explorers trying to uncover historical and wildlife mysteries, others may see it as a personal metaphor...
A picture entitled Fantasies about Desert Sparrows’ is devoted to sparrows with unusually grey plumage.These passerines are found in Repetek Biosphere State Reserve, where specialists carefully observe their populations.
Ornithologists from different countries come here to learn more about the rare species.Other highlights of the exhibition are an artfully crafted set of plates and two high cylinder-shaped metal vessels with a handle (tunche).
They are hand-painted in red and ocher hues and depict beetles: scarabs and European Calosoma beetles, which are threatened with extinction. “I tried to place a focus on the importance of taking care of and preserving the wildlife and on maintaining a species balance in ecosystems, Gulya Mailievna says about her crafts.
I hope that after taking a look at my works people will not kill a beetle crawling nearby.” Most importantly, this delicate and cheerful woman has demonstrated to herself and us that it is possible to start creating at any age if motivated by a deep desire.
Her original and impressive art has proved true the Japanese artist’s words, “There are no people who cannot draw, but there are people, who simply do not allow themselves to do it.”