Lolisanam Ulugova: I and Kovid

Lolisanam Ulugova has been an art manager since 2000. From 2019, she has contributed to a variety of international online resources as an essayist. She has also contributed to writing and producing Tajikistan's first 3-D animation film, a short designed to promote awareness of environmental issues among children.

"I am a newly established curator from Tajikistan, following 20 years experience in art management. Last year I curated a project dedicated to 26th June, the international Day in Support of Victims of Torture. The event combined an exhibition of visual art works alongside a 17 minute theatre performance based on the experiences of torture victims documented by the Human Rights Coalition of Tajikistan.

In the same year, I produced a storytelling performance which paid tribute to my friend who was shot dead in the US. I wrote it as if she was alive, reminiscing on her past, and wanting to stay in this world, worrying for her children that were left behind. I made it to respond to her fate of being killed by a man, a husband, who behaved like her owner and would not let her go. The destiny of a woman who left the Global South for a better future in Global North which turned out to be worthless.

In response to the coronavirus crisis, I have built up a group of artists and initiated discussions in Tajikistan and beyond. We have launched a group on Facebook and I am curating the artistic responses to the theme 'I and Kovid'. Our goal is to reflect on the troubles which the Tajik society are facing due to the pandemic.

This project responds to the experiences I had as part of the Central Asian-Azerbaijan Fellowship Program in the USA where I realised that the world needs to hear our voices. The society I come from is an autocratic regime, where there are many taboo subjects. It is difficult for artists to speak out but we cannot stay silent. Step by step we need to reflect on these hardships and corruption to ensure a better place to live. I believe in power of arts to make positive changes, to create opportunities for a just and equal society."

Lolisanam holds a Master’s degree from the University of Turin, Italy and an undergraduate degree in Russian Language and Literature. She was also a Global Cultural Fellow at the Institute for International Cultural Relations of the University of Edinburgh during academic year 2017-18. You can see more of her writing at the following links:

https://transitorywhite.com/articles/nude-art-as-a-mirror-of-society
https://voicesoncentralasia.org/tajik-fashion-and-the-challenges-of-achieving-an-international-breakthrough
https://voicesoncentralasia.org/contemporary-art-in-central-asia-an-interview-with-a-curator
https://voicesoncentralasia.org/what-do-theaters-in-tajikistan-tell-us
https://thediplomat.com/2020/05/how-to-talk-about-feminism-in-tajikistan

CuratorSpace are currently featuring articles by artists, curators and organisations who want to share their experiences of responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, whether that is artists using their practice as a way of exploring new boundaries of isolation, or as a way to connect more broadly with their communities. We are also interested in hearing from curators and organisations who are offering support to artists and audiences during this time.

Contact us at louise@curatorspace.com to share your story.
 

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