BUTUNAY HAGVERDIYEV
Born in 1989 in Baku, Azerbaijan. He studied Fine Arts in Azim Azimzadeh Art Colledge before continuing his art education in Moscow branch of the British Higher School of Art and Design. However, as a teenager, he was already an accomplished painter, working on restoration of frescos in orthodox church in Baku with the group of artists (2003-2008). His first personal exhibition took place in 2010 at the Contemporary Art Center in Baku, and since then he has participated in a number of significant group exhibitions both in Baku and abroad in Russia, France, Italy.
In 2013, his work was presented in the national pavilion of Azerbaijan at the 55th Venice Biennale in Italy, and in 2015, his wooden sculptures with Azerbaijani carper ornaments were presented at the “Azerbaijani carpets in art” exhibition at the Palais des Cannes Festival in France, and then same works were presented at the Azerbaijan Carpet Museum in Baku.
Back in Baku he held a solo exhibition “Crossing” at QGallery in Icheri Sheher in 2014 he continued to participate in several group shows.
Since that time, he has been working on a number of projects, including digital art, large sculptures and installations. Inspired by the world around him, his most recent work include experiments with watercolor and a research for larger scale sculptures. His watercolor series arose out of his deep interest in nature and research in plants and animals. In his works, he addresses a question of how the environment can be viewed from a different perspective. His works also carry a social message to overestimate our relationship to nature and expand our own understanding of what is the nature as whole, with people as a part of it. In his more abstract works, his sculptures resemble 3D puzzles that mimic natural forms and structures. As he prepares to work on new projects his practice continuously evolves and transforms. He often works with 3d modeling software to create digital paintings and landscapes, reflecting on how technology interacts with the environment.
Butunai Hagverdiyev’s works are kept at the Center of Contemporary Art in Baku, Azerbaijan; Simurg Gallery, Australia; as well as private collections in Australia, Azerbaijan, France, Georgia, Germany, Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Norway, Russia, Great Britain and USA.