BIO:
Farhad Farzali (1989, Baku) is a sound artist who combines traditional culture, popular aesthetics, and contemporary music to address his geopolitical situation in a former Soviet Union country. He conducts anthropological research on Azerbaijans cultural context and documents its unique forms of neo-folklore. Among various exhibitions worldwide, Farzali’s art has been showcased in the 16th Sharjah Islamic Arts Festival (2014), the Islamic Arts Biennale in Jeddah (2023), and the first alternative Azerbaijani pop-up pavilion at the Venice Biennale (2019), along with solo exhibitions in Baku, Venice, and Paris in different years. His works are represented in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art in Baku, the Azerbaijan National Museum of Fine Arts, and Yarat Contemporary Art Space. Farzali currently resides and works in Berlin.
Farhad Farzali (1989, Baku) is a sound artist who combines traditional culture, popular aesthetics, and contemporary music to address his geopolitical situation in a former Soviet Union country. He conducts anthropological research on Azerbaijans cultural context and documents its unique forms of neo-folklore. Among various exhibitions worldwide, Farzali’s art has been showcased in the 16th Sharjah Islamic Arts Festival (2014), the Islamic Arts Biennale in Jeddah (2023), and the first alternative Azerbaijani pop-up pavilion at the Venice Biennale (2019), along with solo exhibitions in Baku, Venice, and Paris in different years. His works are represented in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art in Baku, the Azerbaijan National Museum of Fine Arts, and Yarat Contemporary Art Space. Farzali currently resides and works in Berlin.
SELECTED PROJECTS:
2022 Rewriting Childhood
2022 The Others Will Join
2022 The Infinite Energy
2021 Another Perspective
2021 Within m2
2021 I Am Not An Angel, But...
2020 Speech Therapy
2019 Turandokht. Radio Riddle
2017 Vertigo
2017 Mugham-Karaoke
2017 Runanshah
2017 Molotov Gulab
2017 Happy Birthday, Marina!
2016 What A Gorgeous Place for Revelry!
2015 Azerbaijani Burger
2015 I Am Your Only Tiger
2015 Azerbaijani Coloring Book
2015 G.G.G.G
2014 Granny’s Vocabulary
2014 Torpunk
2014 In the Summer Heat
2022 Rewriting Childhood
Total Installation
2022 The Others Will Join
Computer-generated image NFT
2022 The Infinite Energy
Computer-generated image NFT
2021 Another Perspective
Multichannel audio installation
2021 Within m2
4 channel audio installation
2021 I Am Not An Angel, But...
Computer-generated image NFT
2020 Speech Therapy
4 channel audio installation
2019 Turandokht. Radio Riddle
5 channel radio installation
2017 Vertigo
Multichannel audio interactive installation
2017 Mugham-Karaoke
Interactive karaoke machine
2017 Runanshah
Installation, video
2017 Molotov Gulab
Performance
2017 Happy Birthday, Marina!
Installation
2016 What A Gorgeous Place for Revelry!
Video documentation of the performance
2015 Azerbaijani Burger
Installation
2015 I Am Your Only Tiger
Total installation
2015 Azerbaijani Coloring Book
Interactive installation
2015 G.G.G.G
Neon light installation
2014 Granny’s Vocabulary
Installation, textile, neon, foamcore
2014 Torpunk
C-Print on mugs, multichannel sound
2014 In the Summer Heat
Installation
EDUCATION:
2006—2010 Azerbaijan State Academy of Fine Arts
2010—2012 Azerbaijan State Academy of Fine Arts
2022—now Berlin University of the Arts
SELECTED SOLO SHOWS:
2022 Rewriting Childhood (with Agil Abdullayev)
2022 Tiger is a tiger is a tiger is a tiger
2019 Turandokht. Radio Riddle
2017 Vertigo
2017 Azerbaijan Baroque
2017 Molotov Gulab
2015 I Am Your Only Tiger
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS:
2023 Islamic Arts Biennale
2023 Sample&hold #3: state of soundS
2023 Ins Offene! (2023: Träume) (with Denis Davydov)
2022 Kansas
2021 Taus Makhacheva: It’s Possible to Raise the Ceiling a Bit
2020 Things
2020 Way Back Home
2020 Extension.az: Off the Velvet Chest
2020 New Viewings
2020 Taus Makhacheva: Hold Your Horses
2019 EXTENSION.AZ: Off the Velvet Chest
2019 Café Avarice & Generosity
2019 CI’19 PLUGIN
2019 Bahith
2019 Die Grenze
2018 1918
2018 Die Grenze
2017 Work Never Stops
2017 In Between the Sea and Mountains
2017 Hosting the Inhuman
2017 Die Grenze
2016 300 Words on Resistance
2016 Boom Bang III
2016 To Be Surprised, To Surprise
2015 Candy Mountains, Oil Shores
2015 Greater Caucasian Pavilion
2015 The Review
2015 A Drop of Sky
2014 ASTAR
2014 Nuda Veritas
2014 16th edition of the Sharjah Islamic Arts Festival
2013 Different Cultures — One World
2013 ZAVOD
2013 Eco Art
2013 From Waste to Art
2013 The World Is Yours/The World Is Mine
2013 Process 2013
2012 Aluminum 5
2011 Artist in Residency 2011
2010 At The Cross of XX Century
2009 Aluminum 4
2008 Steps of Time
2007 Aluminum 3
CURATED/CO-CURATED PROJECTS:
2017 100% Made in Azerbaijan
2015 Candy mountains, Oil Shores
2013 ZAVOD
ART FAIRS / AUCTIONS:
2022 Art Dubai
2021 Art Dubai
2019 Contemporary Istanbul
2019 Off White Auction
2019 Art Dubai
2018 Art Dubai
2016 Art Dubai
2014 START Art Fair
AWARDS:
2020 Han Nefkens Foundation-Fundació Antoni Tapies
Video Art Production Award 2020 (Shortlist)
RESIDENCIES:
2023 Pianofabriek
2023 Kulturstiftung Schlos Wiepersdorf
2021 Garage Studios
2018 Art Villa Garikula
2018 Aqtushetii
2011 KulturKontakt Austria - Artists in Residence Programm
2006—2010 Azerbaijan State Academy of Fine Arts
Architect-Artist (BA)
2010—2012 Azerbaijan State Academy of Fine Arts
Architect-Artist (MFA)
2022—now Berlin University of the Arts
Sound Studies and Sonic Arts (MA)
SELECTED SOLO SHOWS:
2022 Rewriting Childhood (with Agil Abdullayev)
Gazelli Art House, Baku, Azerbaijan
(Self-curated by artists)
2022 Tiger is a tiger is a tiger is a tiger
Galerie Dix9, Paris, France
(curated by Azad Asifovich)
2019 Turandokht. Radio Riddle
Private Garden, Venice, Italy
(curated by Asli Samadova)
2017 Vertigo
Palace of the Shirvanshahs, Baku, Azerbaijan
(curated by Asli Samadova)
2017 Azerbaijan Baroque
Fragment Gallery, Moscow, Russia
(curated by Andrey Misiano)
2017 Molotov Gulab
ARTIM Project Space, Baku, Azerbaijan
(curated by Anna Fech)
2015 I Am Your Only Tiger
Yay! Gallery, Baku, Azerbaijan
(curated by Bjorn Geldhof)
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS:
2023 Islamic Arts Biennale
Western Hajj Terminal King Abdulaziz International Airport Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
2023 Sample&hold #3: state of soundS
Akademie der Künste (Hanseatenweg), Berlin, Germany
(Curated by Daisuke Ishida)
2023 Ins Offene! (2023: Träume) (with Denis Davydov)
Kühlhaus Berlin, Berlin, Germany
2022 Kansas
8.Salon, Hamburg, Germany
(curated by Sam Bornstein and Marcel Hüppauff)
2021 Taus Makhacheva: It’s Possible to Raise the Ceiling a Bit
Fries Museum, Friesland
(curated by Hanne Hagenaars)
2020 Things
Anna Nova, Saint Petersburg, Russia
(curated by Alexey Maslyaev)
2020 Way Back Home
Gazelli Art House, Baku, Azerbaijan
2020 Extension.az: Off the Velvet Chest
Smena, Kazan, Russia
(curated by Asli Samadova)
2020 New Viewings
Galerie Barbara Thumm, Berlin, Germany
(curated by Thibaut de Ruyter)
2020 Taus Makhacheva: Hold Your Horses
The Tetley, Leeds, UK
(curated by Taus Makhacheva)
2019 EXTENSION.AZ: Off the Velvet Chest
Triumph Gallery, Moscow, Russia
(curated by Asli Samadova)
2019 Café Avarice & Generosity
Galerie Dix9, Paris, France
(curated by Azad Asifovich)
2019 CI’19 PLUGIN
Istanbul Congress Center, Istanbul, Turkey
(curated by Esra Özkan)
2019 Bahith
Gazelli Art House, London, UK
2019 Die Grenze
House of Youth, Tashkent, Uzbekistan
Hay Art Center, Yerevan, Armenia
(curated by Inke Arns and Thibaut de Ruyter)
2018 1918
Gazelli Art House, Baku, Azerbaijan
2018 Die Grenze
The Ural Branch of NCCA-ROSIZO, Ekaterinburg, Russia
A. Kasteyev State Museum of Arts, Almaty, Kazakhstan
(curated by Inke Arns and Thibaut de Ruyter)
2017 Work Never Stops
Tyumen Museum and Education Association, Tyumen, Russia
(curated by Svetlana Usoltseva)
2017 In Between the Sea and Mountains
Yay! Gallery, Baku, Azerbaijan
(curated by Björn Geldhof and Farah Alakbarli)
2017 Hosting the Inhuman
MMOMA, Moscow, Russia
(curated by Maria Kramar and Karen Sarkisov)
2017 Die Grenze
Tsereteli Art Gallery, Moscow, Russia
ARTPLAY SPb, Saint Petersburg, Russia
The Krasnoyarsk Museum Center, Krasnoyarsk, Russia
Plivka Art Center, Kiev, Ukraine
Tbilisi History Museum, Tbilisi, Georgia
Cultural Center “Korpus”, Minsk, Belarus
HMKV, Dortmund, Germany
(curated by Inke Arns and Thibaut de Ruyter)
2016 300 Words on Resistance
YARAT Contemporary Art Centre, Baku, Azerbaijan
(curateby Suad Garayeva-Maleki and Björn Geldhof)
2016 Boom Bang III
NN Contemporary Art Northampton, Northampton, UK
Žagarės kultūros centras, Žagarė, Lithuania
(curated by Cibic, Virginija Januškevičiūtė, Filip Markiewicz, Katharina Stadler)
2016 To Be Surprised, To Surprise
ARTIM Project Space, Baku, Azerbaijan
(curated by Sergey Bratkov)
2015 Candy Mountains, Oil Shores
PERMM, Perm, Russia
(curated by Nailya Allahverdiyeva and Farhad Farzali)
2015 Greater Caucasian Pavilion
6th Moscow Biennale of Contemporary Art
VNDKh, Moscow, Russia
(curated by “the Unbound” group)
2015 The Review
Yay! Gallery, Baku, Azerbaijan
2015 A Drop of Sky
3rd Baku Public Art Festival
Baku, Azerbaijan
(curated by Sara Raza)
2014 ASTAR
4th Moscow International Biennale for Young Art
MMOMA, Moscow, Russia
(curated by Nailya Allahverdiyeva)
2014 Nuda Veritas
Museum of Modern Art, Baku, Azerbaijan
(curated by Samira Sefi)
2014 16th edition of the Sharjah Islamic Arts Festival
Sharjah Art Museum, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates
2013 Different Cultures — One World
7th Tashkent International Contemporary Art Biennial
Central Exhibition Hall of the Academy of Arts, Tashkent, Uzbekistan
2013 ZAVOD
Baku Air Condition Plant building, Baku, Azerbaijan
(curated by Faig Ahmed and Farhad Farzali)
2013 Eco Art
Museum Center, Baku, Azerbaijan
2013 From Waste to Art
Gala Archeological and Ethnographic Museum, Baku, Azerbaijan
2013 The World Is Yours/The World Is Mine
Kicik QalArt, Baku, Azerbaijan
(curated by Faig Ahmed)
2013 Process 2013
The Central House of Artists, Moscow, Russia
2012 Aluminum 5
International Biennial of Contemporary Art
Museum Center, Baku, Azerbaijan
(curated by Dilara Vahabobva)
2011 Artist in Residency 2011
Ausstellungsraum des BMUKK, Vienna, Austria
2010 At The Cross of XX Century
Azerbaijan State Museum of Art, Baku, Azerbaijan
2009 Aluminum 4
International Biennial of Contemporary Art
Museum Center, Baku, Azerbaijan
(curated by Leyla Akhundzade)
2008 Steps of Time
Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Dresden, Germany
(curated by Leyla Akhundzade)
2007 Aluminum 3
International Biennial of Contemporary Art
Museum Center, Baku, Azerbaijan
(curated by Leyla Akhundzade)
CURATED/CO-CURATED PROJECTS:
2017 100% Made in Azerbaijan
ARTIM Project Space, Baku, Azerbaijan
2015 Candy mountains, Oil Shores
PERMM, Perm, Russia
(co-curated with Nailya Allahverdiyeva)
2013 ZAVOD
“Baku Air Conditioners” plant building, Baku, Azerbaijan
(co-curated with Faig Ahmed)
ART FAIRS / AUCTIONS:
2022 Art Dubai
Dubai, UAE
(presented by Gazelli Art House and Window Project)
2021 Art Dubai
Dubai, UAE
(presented by Gazelli Art House)
2019 Contemporary Istanbul
Istanbul, Turkey
(presented by Ta(r)dino 6)
2019 Off White Auction
Cosmoscow, Moscow, Russia
2019 Art Dubai
Dubai, UAE
(presented by Gazelli Art House)
2018 Art Dubai
Dubai, UAE
(presented by Gazelli Art House)
2016 Art Dubai
Dubai, UAE
(presented by Yay! Gallery)
2014 START Art Fair
Saatchi Gallery, London, UK
(presented by Yay! Gallery)
AWARDS:
2020 Han Nefkens Foundation-Fundació Antoni Tapies
Video Art Production Award 2020 (Shortlist)
RESIDENCIES:
2023 Pianofabriek
Brussels, Belgium
2023 Kulturstiftung Schlos Wiepersdorf
Niederer Fläming, Germany
2021 Garage Studios
Moscow, Russia
2018 Art Villa Garikula
Akhalkalaki, Georgia
2018 Aqtushetii
Omalo, Georgia
2011 KulturKontakt Austria - Artists in Residence Programm
Vienna, Austria