Azernews.Az

By Sara Rajabova

The exhibition "Germany through the eyes of one artist", devoted to the fifth anniversary of a relevant project, opened in the Azerbaijani-German center of culture Kapellhaus in Azerbaijan's capital Baku on Friday, December 7.

The project was organized by the Embassy of Germany, the Azerbaijan State Academy of Arts, the exhibition salons Maiden Tower and Berlin-Baku, Kapital Bank and Standard Insurance company.

Addressing the event, German Ambassador Herbert Quelle said that the art competition has been held for five years on the initiative of the German embassy and many young artists have participated in it by presenting their works.

The ambassador said the competition has been a success and the diplomatic mission decided especially to mark its fifth anniversary.

"Therefore, we asked the winners of the previous competitions to draw the pictures that reflect their imagination about Germany after they visited this country. The works of the artists created before and after these five years are displayed at the exhibition, and we can see the big changes in their perception of Germany. That was the aim of the competition."

Quelle said not only the embassy decides which of the works presented during five years will be the winners of the competition, as the jury chooses the winner.

Afterwards, the ambassador introduced the winner of the competition and spoke about her works. Leman Mammadzade was chosen the winner for five years.

Quelle said a big difference is seen in her present works and drawings of the past. Before visiting Germany she drew Germans drinking and smoking in the pub, which mainly reflected stereotypes. But after visiting Germany she drew an abstract picture in the styles that are called street art and graffity art.

Moreover, the ambassador said that over a year the pictures will be displayed in Baku and Berlin. After that they will be sent back to the embassy and for a long time will be displayed either in Kapellhouse or in the residence of the German embassy.

Also speaking at the event, deputy principal of Azerbaijan State Academy of Arts, People's Artist Salhab Mammadov thanked the German ambassador, saying that during the five years great work has been done jointly with Germany. He informed attendees that every year about 150 works are presented to the competition, among which the jury selects the best three.

The exhibition will run until December 15.