Oriented on making people closer

An artist by nature – perhaps, this is a way to describe Muhammed Amanmammedov, whose photo exhibition has kicked-off at the Academy of Arts Gallery. It includes three expositions: antiques collected on travels and walking tours, collection of vintage cameras, and the main part of the exhibition is photographs. Amateur photographer has collected 500 photos!

Amazing amenities of Turkmenistan, nature, cities and villages, hidden corners of caves and flaming gas crater. Many residents of the country have never been at the places that Muhammad captured in his picturesque pictures, the guests of the vernissage discover for themselves all the bewitching beauty of their homeland, and as if they are acquainting themselves with the sights that they have missed to notice in everyday life.

It is impossible to take eyes off from “live photos” – several plasma screens show records from video camera. However, this is not a video in the usual meaning of the word. Artistic art house reflects the nature of Turkmenistan as it is. Watching the video, you can notice all the minutest details of natural phenomena like gray sky, showery rain, sunset in the desert, so the author draws the attention of viewers to those moments of life that are art themselves.

By specialty, Muhammed Amanmammedov is a mathematician, and, as it is known, it is the queen of sciences, Muhammad is used to adding, and not just numbers. His craving for collecting things is not limited to anything specific: old typewriters, retro telephones, radios and much more.

In honor of the 75th anniversary of the Great Victory, the collector exhibits the military items. The soldier flasks of the Great Patriotic War, the Italian gramophone made in 1936, the sapper shovel dated of 1916 – there are so many things at the exhibition, so it is better see once than hear about it ten times.

The collection of Muhammed is always refilled, our ancestors once used all these things and each item has its own story.

“This is my seventh exhibition, my works have been exhibited in the Czech Republic and St. Petersburg, as well as my exhibits have been presented several times in the French cultural center in Ashgabat,” Muhammed Amanmammedov says. “I am a country boy and all the bright scenic moments are from my childhood. As for collecting, I collect rarities all over the country and most of the things have been purchased in Turkmenistan. The camera that belonged to the famous Soviet radio announcer Yuri Levitan is of special meaning for me”.

Many people came to congratulate the collector, traveler and amateur photographer with the opening of the exhibition. Maestro Gasan Mamedov performed his most famous melodies for the guests of the exhibition, and to the violin accompaniment, the contemplation of the photographs that possess warm-heartedness turned into something more than just an exhibition, rather, into a photo concert.

The exposition will be open over next week as well. Those who missed the opening have the opportunity to get acquainted with the work of Muhammed Amanmammedov and see the world through the eyes of the collector who collects at his photos not only antiques, but, first of all, very sincere human emotions.

Selbi CHARIYEVA