Surreal Weavings of Azerbaijani Artist are Simply Mind-Blowing

Who doesn’t love traditional oriental rugs? This art of weaving has been handed down from generation to generation. However, there is a contemporary visual artist, Faig Ahmed, who has given a twist to this ancient carpet-weaving technique; he incorporates surreal weavings in traditional oriental rugs.

Hailing from Azerbaijan, Ahmed mounts his intricately patterned weavings on structures built out of wood or plastic. A typical creation displays a traditional weave that gets distorted as it progresses so that the end result looks as if the pattern has melted and oozed into a puddle. He has mastered the art of fusing traditional weaves with optical illusions.

Currently based in Baku, Azerbaijan, Ahmed was born in Sumgayit, Azerbaijan. He graduated from Azerbaijan State Academy of Fine Arts in Baku in a sculpture program. It was not long before people started recognizing his unique creativity. Actually, he only designs the patterns, it is his group of skilled weavers, who follow his directions in letter and spirit to produce his stunning creations.

Ahmed’s works have some amazing variety. His artworks in multiple media include sculpture, video, and installation. But the real work that he is recognized for is his surrealist sculptural textiles that encompass psychedelic visual manipulations. And he has a large repertoire of techniques that include glitching, melting, pixelating, warping, and unraveling that he infuses in traditional oriental rugs.

After Ahmed’s works were displayed in Venice Biennale, Azerbaijan’s first pavilion, there was no looking back for him. Today, his works are exhibited worldwide in both group and solo exhibitions. His works are displayed in exhibitions in Baku, Berlin, Dubai, Hong Kong, Honolulu, London, Melbourne, Moscow, Mumbai, New York, Oslo, Paris, Rome, Sydney, Venice, Washington, and other countries.

Ahmed’s works also find pride of place in many museums, such as the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, Los Angeles County Museum, Bellevue Art Museum, Milwaukee Instituted of Art & Design, MOCA Cleveland, Museum of Old and New Art in Tasmania, the Museum of Contemporary Art of Rome, and many others. He was also nominated for the Jameel Prize 3 at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, UK.

Faig Ahmed

Website

Comments

comments

Deepak Mehla

Working on building tools that will help people find quality content on social media platforms like Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, etc., so they can spend less time scrolling through the feeds and more time discovering new things!