Among works by luminaries of the national school of painting is Izzat Klychev’s well-loved “A Book Fair”, which calls up an association with a photograph from a family album. …The painting portrays a sunlit street of 1950s Ashgabat, reflecting the positive atmosphere and excitement of a school fair. The artist managed to catch the true spirit of the times paying attention to subtle nuances. The work reveals the warmth of the Turkmen sun and the sunlight is everywhere: in the air, on the ground, on the buildings and faces of sellers and customers…
“Back to School Tomorrow” by Pyotr Tutinasov is another wonderful painting, which is always on display in the annual themed exposition. The painting shows a girl, a long-time favorite among viewers, who is eagerly anticipating the beginning of a new school year. Her schoolbag with books and notebooks is reminiscent of those all schoolchildren had in the 1950s. The general atmosphere generated by the painting is what captivates the viewer most: a light room, a wide-open window and transparent curtains perfectly match the schoolgirl’s upbeat mood.
One of the exhibition’s many highlights is Evgenia Adamova’s “The 1st of September”, which is very familiar to regular visitors to the museum. The People’s Artist of Turkmenistan was able to accurately capture the psychological moment and convey intense emotions experienced by the people in the painting. The work by Adamova evokes memories in each and every one of us: once we all came to school for the first time all excited and eager to meet our first teacher and classmates, or took our children there.
People’s Artist of Turkmenistan Yakub Annanurov devoted much attention to education in his works. The exhibition features four paintings by the artist. One of them is a portrait of the renowned scientist, writer and educator, Doctor of Philology Aman Kekilov. Ashgabat Teacher Training College is named after him.
Yakub Annanurov’s “A Teacher” is well known to professionals and art lovers alike. Alongside with it, on show is another colorful painting of a young teacher by the artist. Although executed from a different angle and in different hues, it is equally exquisite and full of focal accents.
Four restored paintings, the latest notable additions to the Museum’s collection from the regions, are a big draw for visitors. Among them is Nikolay Didenko’s “Streetscape” showing old Ashgabat, which has now faded into history: a cozy, quiet street with an irrigated ditch full of cool water, and a line of trees with spreading crowns that give passers-by shade from the sun. This is the unique chance for senior people to step back in time to the days of their youth.
Also notable are two restored portraits: a portrait of the famous ophthalmologist, Professor Sary Karanov (who was the first Turkmen doctor to be awarded a doctorate degree) by Pavel Korolyov and a portrait of Khabib Annamuradov by Kakageldy Seyitmukhammedov. The latter depicts the elderly man (yashuly) with a look of total concentration on his face, doing financial calculations …
Of the restored works, “Portrait of a Girl” by an unknown artist is arguably the most vivid and impressive one. A charming girl with merry twinkles in her eyes has looked up from her book and is now gazing straight into the eyes of the viewer. The delicate transitions in tones and shades, and warm colors artfully used by the artist help to expressively convey the little girl’s cheerful mood and capture the spirit of the times…
The art exhibition makes it possible to see education and mentoring (including in creative work) in a wider context and to grasp the importance of a dialogue of styles and epochs and a winning combination of the accumulated experience of past generations and today’s innovations for the development of one’s artistic vision. I would like to thank the organizers for interesting discoveries, invaluable insights and aesthetic delight.
