YEMAA: Art Center in the oil capital of Kazakhstan

The exhibition view «Acquisition ∞ Invention»

In 2021, Kazakhstan celebrates 30 years since gaining independence. During this time contemporary art has already seen three different generations of artists,however the building of the institutional system is still at the stage of development with spontaneous and ineffective governmental projects and the main driving force being private initiatives. Exhibitions, lectures, and other cultural events remain a privilege for the residents of the two big cities Nur-Sultan and Almaty; other regions remain excluded from the access to contemporary art and up-to-date knowledge. New center of contemporary culture Yemaa, which announced the opening in May of this year, took up the challenge and received positive feedback from the local audience in the city of Atyrau - informally known as the oil capital of Kazakhstan. IADA spoke with the organizers of the center Malika Urazgalieva and Asel Akhmetzhanova, about the importance of decentralizing culture and knowledge, and the need to create art clusters in the regions.

About the idea of creating an art center in Atyrau

Malika Urazgalieva: The idea of creating the center appeared in September 2020, an local entrepreneur invited me to see a space and offered the opportunity to create a place where people could engage in various creative practices. I shared this proposal with the curator Asel Akhmetzhanova and we immediately started developing the concept together with the designer Zhanel Syzdykova.

Asel Akhmetzhanova: From the very beginning we understood that we wanted to get away from the sterile gallery space, our task was to create a place of attraction for creative people, space where you want to return to gain knowledge and new experience. We would like to develop different directions, not only contemporary art, but also music, cinema, photography, design. Based on this we started thinking on how to design a physical space and the idea appeared that it should be very convenient, transformable, so eventually the choice was made in favor of the construction of mobile walls.

About the name

M: The name of the center “Yemaa” is a typical Atyrau exclamation, expressing surprise in both positive and negative contexts. Every resident of Atyrau has heard this word in conversations. While choosing the name it was also important for us to base it on our mission to bring art to masses. It emphasizes the blur between low and high, a border that has long ceased to be relevant in contemporary art. Through this local slang word we wanted to express the idea that this is not a place for privileged people, the center of contemporary culture is open to everyone.

About the center and periphery of culture

M: Such centers, in my opinion, break the stereotype that the audience in the regions of Kazakhstan is not ready to perceive contemporary art and culture. Right from the opening, we get acquainted with a conscious and inquisitive audience, open to new experiences. The visitors at the opening intuitively read the content of the works, they didn’t express any rejection. Atyrau has a large community of creative people, as well as many other cities of Kazakhstan. The opinion that there is some kind of gated art, accessible only to a small community in large cities seems to me fundamentally wrong. Centers like ours have the potential to decentralize culture, shift our understanding of the periphery.

The exhibition view «Observation: Nicole Carstens»

A: International practice shows that cultural centers are a positive signal for attracting investments, urban infrastructure development of small and midsize businesses. Independent cultural sites are a certain marker that speaks of openness to cooperation and new connections. Of course, we are talking about a small format, but these are only the first steps that we are making in this direction. Unfortunately, in other cities of Kazakhstan there are no such centers, only local history and art museums and in these institutions a dialogue about contemporary culture doesn't happen.

About the influence of cultural institutions on the city

A: Many people in Kazakhstan have an association with Atyrau and the entire western region only as a city where oil is produced, this perception of the region is losing its relevance and now we understand that the city needs a new face. In the process of forming urban identity, the work of cultural institutions has an important impact on the city. We would like to get away from the usual perception of the oil capital, the city has a very rich history starting from architecture to the cultural landscape. We want to work with contemporary culture and I believe that Atyrau has a lot to offer apart from producing oil.

M: The architect Askhat Saduov visited us with a lecture, there was a meeting with urbanists, architects and designers where the problems of the city were raised, for example how safe and open it is for guests. The dialogue between experts and citizens is a very valuable experience: people get involved and offer their ideas, hence there is a certain process, reflection. These meetings develop critical thinking, people start to consider their influence and how to make the city better. Our task is to be a platform for such communication.

About the first exhibition «Acquisition ∞ Invention»

«Untitled» by Anvar Musrepov / «Acquisition ∞ Invention»

A: We curated the exhibition together with Asel Mukasheva, preparation for the exhibition took more than 7 months. We wanted to show an intersection of current themes and approaches in Kazakhstani art, we have selected artists from different regions who were born after the acquisition of independence. In the process of forming the concept, we consulted with anthropologist Kulshat Medeuova, and with culturologist Zira Nauryzbaeva, it was important to hear the opinions of experts from the academic field. The exhibition turned out to be eclectic: some of the works were created specifically for the exhibition and some were selected from already existing works.

About the plans on forming the program

A: The development of the educational program is a priority, we also plan to launch a big cycle of video lectures on film studies. Regarding the frequency of new exhibitions, we will update the exposition every season. Based on the library, we plan meetings with authors, discussions of books. In addition, an important direction is to highlight music and create a laboratory for musical experiments. We plan to invite artists and develop cooperation with institutions from the Caspian region.

Text: Anvar Musrepov