Artful Voices
Contemporary art in Uzbekistan is diversifying as artists begin boldly exploring personal themes, reinterpreting traditions, and seeking their own language. Some draw inspiration from family history: others from cinema, dreams, or urban environments. We've gathered four young captivating creators to follow – each honest, diverse, and confidently paving their own paths.
Text by Malika Fattakhova
Photos by Marie Romanova, Sergey Pogosyan
Tamila Bismakhova
Tamila is an artist, photographer, and jeweler living in Tashkent. She began her artistic journey at age 16, starting with book graphics, before moving into painting and digital illustration, which now form her unique visual language.
Tamila draws inspiration from everyday life and interactions with the people around her. Images of Eastern women frequently appear in her works – calm, reserved, and full of inner dignity. Portraiture is her method of conveying a state of being, not just an appearance.
For Tamila, creativity and life are inseparable: a secluded rhythm, a home outside the city, and self-connection help her focus on sensations. She finds beauty in simplicity – and expresses it through painting, photography, and jewelry design.
Anita Turadjanova
Anita uses realistic painting to explore inner experiences and themes of memory, identity, and feminism. Her works are made recognizable by their female figures, an unusual perception of space/perspective, and subtle visual symbolism — all of which tell a story about the external and the internal landscapes.
Anita works primarily with oil paint, which allows for layering, revisiting, and conveying texture and mood through color. Her artistic journey began in adolescence when she realized that drawing was not just a hobby, but a necessity. She enrolled in Benkov College, then continued her studies in St. Petersburg. Today, in addition to studio work, Anita teaches. She finds just as much inspiration in communicating with students as she does in books and music.
Mukhammadiyor Muminov
Mukhammadiyor grew up in Fergana. His introduction to art began almost symbolically: at the age of five, he drew all over his grandmother's living room with a ballpoint pen. Since then, drawing has been a part of his life. He graduated from the Kamoliddin Behzod Institute with a degree in interior design. His first solo exhibition, "In Search of Light," was held at the Ilkhom Theater and received raving reviews.
Diyor paints with oil and compares his art to a movie frame — a powerful and expressive medium that reflects an entire story. He is inspired by dreams, accidental images, Iranian cinema, and soul and jazz music — especially Sade's voice. He enjoys taking his time with each work of art, making his paintings not only a visual experience, but also a deeply emotional one.
Dilbek Tukhtakulov
Dilbek Tukhtakulov works at the intersection of hyperrealism, surrealism, and sophism. His graphics are meticulously crafted with a high degree of detail, imbued with drama, allegory, and philosophical depth. He constructs his visual language as a reflection on things, symbols, and meanings.
He studied at the Kokand College of Arts, later teaching at the Behzod Institute of Painting and Design. Today, he collaborates with the Academy of Arts and develops his own projects, combining art with the study of perception and symbolism.
Dilbek has a particular interest in theater and fiction: they influence how he builds his compositions, distributes accents, and shapes the viewer's imagination.
