Batima Zaurbekova Retrospective Celebrates Kazakh Tapestry Pioneer

(MENAFN- USA Art News) A landmark retrospective exhibition in Almaty, Kazakhstan, is highlighting the extensive career of Batima Zaurbekova, a prominent figure in the nation's art scene. Titled“Threads of Heritage,” the exhibition at the Abylkhan Kasteyev National Museum of Arts of the Republic of Kazakhstan commemorates the artist's 80th birthday.

The show features more than 80 works, primarily tapestries, alongside paintings and drawings. It traces Zaurbekova's artistic journey through two perspectives, examining both Kazakh themes and motifs and the ideas of Western Modernism. While Zaurbekova is widely recognized in Kazakhstan for her pivotal role in establishing the national school of tapestry, her work is less known internationally.

The exhibition's opening on September 24 drew a significant turnout, including notable figures from Kazakhstan's cultural and political elite. Among the attendees were Arman Kyrybayev, the Minister of Culture, and entrepreneur Nurlan Smagulov, who in 2025 opened the largest private museum of modern and contemporary art in Central Asia, located near the Kasteyev.

Born in 1946 in the Zhambyl region, known for its Silk Road heritage sites, Zaurbekova initially learned needlework and textiles from her mother, a seamstress. Although she first pursued painting while studying at the Oral Tansykbayev Almaty College of Decorative and Applied Arts, now the Alma-Ata Art School, tapestry became her chosen medium after graduating in 1969.

“All the preconditions were there for me to be a painter,” Zaurbekova said during an interview at the museum,“but tapestry was something new, something exciting, and it absorbed me to the extent that even without thinking, I just started doing it.”

Zaurbekova's vertical loom technique results in“back-breakingly slow” creations, yet she has maintained a prolific output. Her early recognition as a tapestry pioneer in the 1970s led to quick advancement within the Soviet artistic system. In 1980, she received the Shokan Valikhanov State Prize of Kazakh SSR. Following Kazakhstan's independence, she was honored with the title of Honored Worker of Culture of the Republic of Kazakhstan in 2004.

Her extensive body of work includes hundreds of tapestries, ranging from small-scale early pieces to monumental later works. The exhibition showcases rarely seen items from Zaurbekova's personal archive and 18 pieces from the museum's permanent collection, which are recognized as part of Kazakhstan's national cultural legacy.

Zaurbekova's art consistently references Kazakh history and culture, incorporating traditional icons, motifs, and narratives, from figures in national dress to mountain landscapes. Despite her career beginning in the USSR, she stated that she experienced no creative restrictions.“I did not feel any restrictions, any limitations on my work. I was free to do whatever I pleased,” she noted.

The exhibition's wall texts connect her work conceptually with Western thinkers and artists, such as Paul Klee's ideas on nature guiding form and Maurice Merleau-Ponty's philosophy of unified physical reality. Her“Voices of Ages” series is also compared to Franz Marc's holistic view of existence, while acknowledging the artists' distinct cultural backgrounds.

Zaurbekova explained her creative process:“I take all these ancient patterns, ancient elements that symbolize something for the Kazakh people, and then I reinterpret them in the Modern context. My work is a traditional work, it is a national work, not folk, a work from Kazakhstan.”

For the first 25 years of her career, Zaurbekova executed every aspect of her work independently until eye issues prevented her. She then transitioned to designing gridded patterns for studio assistants to execute, while continuing to draw and paint. Her latest piece, Transitional Season ( 2026 ), a felt and appliqué work, was completed over two months. Zaurbekova's advice to younger fiber artists and herself at 80 is,“Keep creating. Always keep creating.”

The exhibition runs through November 9 at the Abylkhan Kasteyev National Museum of Arts of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Almaty.

Source: Artnet News

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