Future with Values

The Heydar Aliyev Museum was created at the Center prior to the 90th anniversary of the founding father of the modern state in Azerbaijan. The display featuring the state-of-the-art design and cutting-edge technologies is operating since May 9, 2013. As a source for researching the legacy of the national leader, the exhibition is second to none. The concept of presenting information at the museum is based on two parallel chains of events. One conveys the message of the life story of Heydar Aliyev (1923-2003), while the other presents the historical context of seminal events in Azerbaijani society, politics, culture, economy, and sports.

During the recent period, the Heydar Aliyev Center succeeded in hosting a set of international events. The Crans Montana Forum, the 2nd and 3rd International Baku Humanitarian Forums, the 12th OEC Summit, the 2nd World Intercultural Dialogue Forum, the 4th ISESCO Ministerial Conference on Children (Problems of Children and Urbanization in the Islamic World), are just a few to mention. Operating under the slogan “To The Future with Values,” the Heydar Aliyev Center has launched a number of projects to support culture and history, preserve ethnic and spiritual values, customs and traditions, and to promote them among the younger generation.

Presently, the Center is offering the Treasures of Azerbaijan exhibition, which features more than 200 unique exhibits pertaining to Azerbaijan’s ancient history. The visitors have an excellent chance to enjoy some outstanding pieces of carpet weaving, copper works, jewelry, national costume, and traditional musical instruments. While projects in science, education, culture, medicine, sports, ecology, and economics remain a priority in the center’s activities, a number of successful efforts were made in the field of promoting modern art in Azerbaijan. The “Andy Warhol: Life, Death, and Beauty” exhibition grew into a real event and brought more than 10,000 visitors, both local and those from neighboring countries to the museum. The exhibition of yet another internationally renowned sculptor, Tony Cragg of the UK, has been organized at the Heydar Aliyev Center. The show featured a total of his 28 sculptures and marked his 65th jubilee. The Heydar Aliyev Center has also familiarized Azerbaijani viewers with extraordinary works of French sculptor Laurence Jenkell. The exhibition featured sculptures of flags of different countries in the form of candies. Alongside the works of world-famous art figures, visitors to this magnificent building also had the opportunity to review the paintings and sculptures of Azerbaijani artists.

The Fly to Baku: Contemporary Art from Azerbaijan exhibition held from December 27, 2013 to March 1, 2014, provided another excellent opportunity to get a hands-on experience of the national art scene. The show was launched by Ms. Leyla Aliyeva, the Vice-President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, and has already been held in London, Paris, Berlin, Rome, Moscow, and Vienna. The exhibition’s final display at the Heydar Aliyev Center featured a number of genres, such as media painting, installation, sculpture, video, photography, and performance art. The Heydar Aliyev Center was also home to the Cradle to Cosmos exhibition by the US Space & Rocket Center. More than 100 unique exhibits were presented in Baku, such as satellites, space stations, astronaut attire and accessories, rock samples from the moon, and meteorites.

In addition, the Heydar Aliyev Center conducted two international art competitions, named Kuknar and Samani (fir-tree and sprouted wheat), for artists and sculptors working in the sphere of contemporary art, thereby creating a new platform for them to showcase their talents. As a part of its mission to bridge cultures and traditions, the Heydar Aliyev Center has hosted performances of worldwide renowned orchestras such as the Tchaikovsky Grand Symphony Orchestra (Russia), the Wind Quintet of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Bilkent Symphony Orchestra (Turkey). Stars who have performed at the center include Alessandro Safina, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Kitaro, Michael Bolton, and Itzhak Perlman.