Grantee Events

A Conversation featuring Uzbek Artist and Filmmaker Saodat Ismailova Saodat Ismailova discusses the cultural genesis of “Qyrq Qyz,” her avant-garde multimedia retelling of an ancient Central Asian epic tale, and contextualizes this new work within her strikingly original artistic oeuvre, which includes award-winning documentary and feature films, and a video installation at the 55th Venice […]

Across the steppes of Central Asia, modern bards still sing the tale of Gulaim, the teenage warrior who defended ancient clans from Eastern invaders with the help of her qyrq qyz, or 40 girls, Amazons of Turkic legend. Enduring for centuries in a male-dominated epic tradition, this powerful matriarchal narrative comes to full-throated life in […]