Unique fashion show: Fantastic warrioresses reach Gobustan

By Azernews

By Laman Ismayilova

A stunning fashion show has taken place in the Gobustan State Reserve.

As part of the show, the head of the project, associate professor of the State University of Culture and Arts Aysel Azizova presented a fashion collection inspired by Gobustan rock paintings synthesized with the elements of Azerbaijani, Chinese and the Ottoman Empire's ancient clothes.

The event was co-organized by Gobustan State Reserve and the State University of Culture and Arts, Trend Life reported.

The project aims at the preservation and promotion of the country's ancient heritage in clothes and its presentation to the general public.

The collection entitled "Dance of Gobustan masterpieces on the Silk Road" includes 40 stylish fashion looks. Aysel Azizova used leather, fur, silk and linen in her collection. Unique outfits, fantastic makeup looks and hair styles left no one indifferent.

The director of the Gobustan State Reserve Vugar Isayev, vice-rector of the Azerbaijan State University of Culture and Arts Gulshan Aliyeva, head of the Design and Decorative and Applied Art Department, People’s Artist Arif Aziz, associate professor of the State University of Culture and Arts, Honored Art Worker, fashion designer Fakhriya Khalafova and the dean of the Arts Faculty Sevil Karimova highly appreciated the fashion project.

Gobustan is home to one of the world's largest ancient petroglyphs collections. Settled since the 8th millennium BC, the area contains more than 600,000 distinct paintings, going as far back as 20,000 years to as recent as 5,000 years ago. 

The rock paintings dating back to 8 millenniums reflect different hunting scenes, ceremonial and ritual processes of the habitants of these places. Gobustan petroglyphs were repeatedly investigated by the famous Norwegian explorer and adventurer Thor Heyerdahl, who recognized local boats petroglyphs as the oldest known images of pirogue in the world.

Most of the rock engravings depict primitive men, animals, battle-pieces, ritual dances, bullfights, boats with armed oarsmen, warriors with lances in their hands, camel caravans, pictures of sun and stars.

Gobustan was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list in 2007.