The publication “Yaşqırımtatarressamları” (Young Crimean Tatar artists) is dedicated to the work of a new generation of Crimean Tatar artists, whose art has entered the artistic life of the Crimean peninsula already in the XXI century. The fine art of young people is interesting for its original perception of the world, attitude to the present, to the national and world artistic culture, variety of artistic styles, themes, images and creative individuality.
It should be noted that the modern Crimean Tatar fine art is a relatively young phenomenon, compared with the general trends in the development of national schools in world art, and yet it does not remain aloof from the world art processes.
A small historical excursion into the past should be made to better perceive the general picture of the formation of the national visual arts. The development of the Crimean Tatar art took shape against the background of complex historical twists and turns, accompanied by dramatic events. One of the most tragic pages of history remains the deportation of the Crimean Tatar people of the 1944 year, resulting in irreparable damage to the national culture and art.
Given the chain of historical events, characterising the integrity of the development of modern Crimean Tatar fine art can be divided into three stages: the pre-war period, the post-war period and the end of the twentieth – early twenty-first centuries. It is particularly important to highlight the initial, pre-revolutionary period, which requires a separate special study.
The beginning of the formation of modern Crimean Tatar fine art can be considered the first quarter of the twentieth century, where Russian and Ukrainian artistic traditions had a significant influence. Undoubtedly, the pleiad of such remarkable artists as Usein Bodaninsky (1877–1938), Abdurefi Abiyev (1879–1938), Tokhtar Afuzov (1901–1942), Amet Ustaev (1909–1990), who laid the foundations of the Crimean-Tatar artistic tradition, should have been recognised.
During the period of the deportation of the Crimean Tatar people, the cultural traditions of the Uzbek, Tajik and other nations of Central Asia significantly influenced the processes of the formation of their national art.
The Crimean-Tatar visual art receives a powerful impetus in the 90s of the XX – the beginning of the XXI centuries, which is connected with the difficult return and arrangement in the historical homeland – in the Crimea. This period is characterized by the richness and diversity of styles, techniques, genres and images.
This publication does not claim to cover the creativity of all young Crimean Tatar artists, but only allows getting acquainted with the works of thirteen masters who are representatives of different types of fine art: painting, graphics, sculpture.
It should be emphasized that the vast majority of young artists received a basic art education in the Crimea. Some authors are currently continuing their professional education, but already outside the peninsula – in art universities of Kyiv, Kharkiv, and Moscow.
Most of the young Crimean Tatar artists consider their goal not only to reflect the beauty of the surrounding world but also to embody deep philosophical ideas, creating images in various genres and subject-themed compositions.
A striking example of the diversity of artistic techniques, who are experimenting with form and colour are the painters Lenur Velilyaev and Elsar Kursait. In their sceneries, still lifes, narrative compositions, emotional and psychological tension is felt, which is achieved by the colour chords of warm and cold hues, the ratio of the size of the silhouette of the forms and the finest development of the details of the colour spectrum. Colour in their work is one of the most important elements of creating an image of a picture.
A generalised retro-look at the customs, events of the life that had disappeared without a trace, from the history of the Crimean Tatar people is felt in a series of watercolour and graphic compositions by artists Riza Abdujemil and Muksum Sherfedin. Folklore images in the works of R. Abdujemil are a tribute to memory, nostalgia epoch, conveyed by the author in details, appealing to his contemporaries so that the past does not sink into oblivion. In a series of book illustrations created by M. Sherfedin, the mood and character of literary characters of Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist are transmitted. The expressive style of the graphic series, watercolours and pencil created by these masters, is characterised by the decorative colour gamut, the rhythm of the forms, the ratio of the size of the figure and the background.
Genre diversity and academic excellence attract the works of artist-painter Suleiman Gezlevly. In his thematic compositions and the Crimean landscapes, one can feel the figurative philosophical generalisation, the depth of space. Colour mood in still life compositions is based on the unity of colour gamut and the transfer of the material texture of the objective environment. In portraiture, there is a colour generalisation, a detailed elaboration of the form that conveys the psychological characteristics and spiritual world of the character in the painting.
The predominant theme of paintings by Zubeir Kadri-Zade, Ayder Yagya, Hatitje Reshit are this Crimean nature with its generalised features of the mountain landscape and the motives of the coastal expanses. The lyrical feeling in these works is achieved by the consonance of colour shades, the diversity of the nature of the Crimean landscape and the preserved historical corners with a rich national flavour. In the graphic sheets of A. Yagya which devoted to the miraculously preserved national dwellings and the lost corners of the Crimea, the landscape is reconstructed, and amazing emotional environment is created. The artists Z. Kadri-Zade and H. Resit do not limit their work down to the framework of landscape art, but also create paintings in the still-life genre.
Picturesque and graphic works by Sayare Amet, Elmaz Dremdje, Emine Sadykova are imbued with romance and poetry. The works are mainly devoted to their native land. The authors are concerned about the relationship between man and nature, the spiritual world, so their work is marked by a desire to poeticise the portrayed. The figurative and emotional mood of the paintings is built on a variety of colours. The peculiarity of the authors’ paintings is recognisable motifs of the Crimean nature and city streets, the lack of a certain plot in the landscape space, imbued with a sense of a certain silence. The integrity of colour harmony achieves the compositional image in all works.
The plot compositions in the popular print style with folk images made by the artist Zera Ablyazis attract with decorative colour and plasticity of the figures. Love for the national artistic heritage is manifested in a series of works. The author skillfully weaves ornamental forms and details into a pictorial line, creating an integral harmonious picture. It should also be emphasised that the work of Z. Ablyazis made in the author’s technique of painting on glass.
The detailed and stylistically generalised plastic images of easel sculpture created by the young sculptor Oleg Alim attract with the tension of form and expressiveness of the silhouette. Being in a constant creative search for new images and themes, the author finds unusual artistic solutions. In the plot compositions of the sculpture, made in metal and stone, there is an emotional and psychological state of the images, and in several works – drama and irony.
The creativity of young Crimean Tatar artists gaining height, the works presented in the publication are only one of the steps to the intended goal. Reality gives the necessary spiritual impetus, stimulating their creativity. It should be noted that young authors still have a lot to do to more fully reveal and brighten their unique style, to reveal more figuratively their history and modernity in their works.
D. DJANKOZZY, art historian
