00:03It was important for us to show that Uzbekistan's heritage is not frozen in its monuments.
00:10It continues to form the basis of its present identity in the modern world
00:16and it continues to shape its future.
00:21For centuries, Uzbekistan has been a crossroads for cultures, ideas and artistic tradition.
00:28Now at the Qatar's Museum of Islamic Art, two new exhibitions take us on a journey through that history.
00:36From a 7th century wall painting from Afrasyab to a cenotaph from Kiva
00:41and a collection of ancient manuscripts, textiles, ceramics and jewellery,
00:46nearly 150 objects were carefully selected by Uzbekistan-born curator Anastasia Silkacheva.
00:54We collaborated with our partners, the Uzbekistan Art and Culture Development Fund
00:58to select key loan objects from 13 Uzbekistan institutions.
01:05Heritage is something that continues to form the basis of our identity, of our future development.
01:12And only through being adapted and reinterpreted and renewed can it survive.
01:19Some objects, like this Sogdian wall painting from a major archaeological site in Samarkand,
01:26have never travelled outside Uzbekistan until now.
01:30This particular fragment is very important scientifically because on that road there is a Sogdian inscription
01:36identifying these as ambassadors coming from local principalities to bear gifts to Kivar Khumar.
01:45The exhibition also showcases the revival of ancient Uzbek craftsmanship,
01:50among them the production of silk paper and the art of paper marbling or abrubahor.
01:58Its function is not as art on its own, but as a backing paper for manuscript illumination.
02:04It's for miniature painting.
02:05And we see that in the works of Davlatoshev, who is a contemporary artisan miniature painter from Bukhara.
02:12He has revived this technique on his own in Uzbekistan,
02:16and he continues to teach modern miniature painting, abrubahor,
02:21and other techniques in a school for children, especially in Bukhara.
02:27Uzbekistan's rich heritage has evolved through the centuries,
02:30from its architecture and scholarship to colourful silks and ceramics.
02:35But what happens when this heritage is experienced through the eyes of a Qatari artist?
02:39That's the idea behind Ektashif Uzbekistan,
02:42an exhibition showcasing works created by Qatari artists
02:46after immersing themselves in the landscape of the Central Asian country.
02:50This program, it's more than just a study program or an exhibition.
02:55It just gives the artists the space and time to explore
02:59and to learn more about the traditions and the culture, art.
03:03All of them, they visit the same city,
03:05and by each of them, they took it in their own perspective.
03:09Bread, wood columns, and pomegranate.
03:12Taking inspiration from food and architecture became second nature while exploring Uzbekistan.
03:19The bread is my way of saying,
03:22OK, I'm an artist, I will make an artwork,
03:24but I'm not going to try to do something similar to what everyone trying to express it
03:29in a really sophisticated way.
03:30So I used that, and I made different patterns to represent
03:33how they have their love and passion and devotion for their bread.
03:38But also, each city has their own unique style.
03:41From the first visit in Tashkant, I kept noticing that they use the trunks of the trees
03:47as support columns for the outdoor settings and the terraces, and it's engraved.
03:52So I wanted to do that as a vase, since that's what I really love doing.
03:56And I used some stamps of motifs that I liked and I saw from the Uzbekistani culture
04:03and also from the Qatari culture.
04:05Another artist chose to express her experiences, thoughts, and emotions
04:10on a big, colorful carpet.
04:13This is a story about the carpet's strength of memory.
04:17It is memory about women.
04:19The women, she presents the heritage, the culture, the identity,
04:23and the strength is saying the story that cannot be seen by the word.
04:29It is dialogue between Qatar and Uzbekistan.
04:32It is not about what I saw.
04:36No, it is about what I feel, and I present it in this carpet.
04:40Here in Doha, Uzbekistan's heritage continues to inspire new stories,
04:46reminding us that culture is not something to only preserve,
04:50but something we continue to create, regardless of language or borders.
