Azerbaijan
Suleyman Rustam
poet and playwright
Suleyman Rustam was not only the poet, he also was a translator and a literary man. He translated works of I.A.Krylov, A.S.Griboyedov, A.S.Pushkin, M.Y.Lermontov, N.A.Nekrasov and others into his native language. Suleyman Rustam's works were translated into many languages of the world and also into Russian.
Rustam Ibragimbekov
screenwriter, dramatist and producer
Since the 1970s, he has collaborated with Nikita Mikhalkov. Urga, Territory of Love, directed by Mikhalkov and released in North America as Close to Eden, won the Golden Lion Award in the Venice Film Festival, as well as the Felix Award in Berlin as Best European Film. Close to Eden was nominated for American Film Academy Award (Oscar) in 1995 as Best Foreign Language Film. Burnt by the Sun (directed by Nikita Mikhalkov) received an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 1994 and Grand Prize of the Jury at 47th Cannes International Film Festival; their film “The Barber of Siberia” was the most expensive European production of 1997. Ibragimbekov was co-screenwriter with Sergei Bodrov of French director Régis Wargnier's Oscar-nominated 1999 movie East/West.
Photo by: Gulustan under CC BY-SA 3.0
Ateshgah
Fire temple
The fire-worshipping Zoroastrians left their mark at Ateshgah, where the Fire Temple amazes visitors with its spouts of flame. The present temple only dates from the 19th century, though, as the site was adopted by the Hindu merchants trading in nearby Baku.
Faig Ahmed
contemporary visual artist
Best known for his surrealist weavings which integrate visual distortions into traditional oriental rugs.
Ahmed graduated from the sculpture program at the Azerbaijan State Academy of Fine Arts in Baku in 2004. In 2007, Ahmed's work was included in the Azerbaijan's first pavilion in the Venice Biennalle.
Tahir Salahov
painter
First Secretary of the Union of Artists of the USSR (1973–1992), Vice-President of the Russian Academy of Arts, member of over 20 academies and other creative organizations throughout the world, including academies of art of France, Spain, Germany, Austria, etc.
His later works are more peaceful and lyrically contemplative, and Eastern influences are more apparent, as in Portrait of Grandson Dan (1983, Azerbaijan State Museum of Art), in which the composition and colouring are subordinate to the flowing rhythms of Eastern medieval miniatures. His lines became smoother and more melodious, his palette more sophisticated. Many of his most successful works are associated with his impressions of foreign countries (e.g., Mexican Corrida; 1969, Mustafayev Azerbaijan State Museum of Art). He also produced expressive drawings and stage designs.
Photo by: Kremlin.ru under CC BY 4.0
Kelaghayi
women's headgear
Its production and the wearing were included in the list of intangible cultural heritage UNESCO. It is a square-shaped silk scarf with special prints on it that is considered a national dress in Azerbaijan. It protects from the hot sun and cold wind.
Heydar Aliyev Center
Is a building complex in Baku, Azerbaijan designed by Iraqi-British architect Zaha Hadid and noted for its distinctive architecture and flowing, curved style that eschews sharp angles.The center is named after Heydar Aliyev, the first secretary of Soviet Azerbaijan from 1969 to 1982, and president of Azerbaijan Republic from October 1993 to October 2003.
