TOVA Foundation was a host for the recent field trip to Almaty that gave us a chance to experience the city’s cultural energy first-hand. Between the mountains and modern skyline, Almaty is quickly establishing itself as a regional hub for contemporary art and culture.

Highlights included the opening of the new Almaty Museum of Arts, the special evening at Tselinny Center of Contemporary Culture, and the Barsakelmes performance produced and delivered by Balkash Snitsya, dudeontheguitar, lovozero, SAMRATTAMA, Steppe Sons, Saadet Türköz, Zere and the Tselinny Team. 

Aside from the official inaugurations TOVA’s guests also visited studios of Sayan and Zhenya Baigaliyevs, Nurbol Nurakhmet, Saule Dyussenbina, Saule Suleimenova and Kuanysh Bazargaliyev, Alibay Bapanov, and attended solo and group exhibitions across the city including Yelena & Viktor Vorobyev’s Window at Egin Art Space, estate of Moldakul Narymbetov as well as Where Wings Grow at Aspan Gallery featuring artworks of Askhat Akhmedyarov, Bakhyt Bubikanova, Ulan Djaparov, Saodat Ismalova, Rustam Khalfin, Moldakul Narymbetov and Saule Suleimenova, It was a rather busy month for Almaty and the participants of the program that made it difficult to pay a visit to all the artists and scholars that we intended to. However, such trips will become a significant part of TOVA’s DNA and we will be coming more frequently visiting more artists and lectures in the near future.