French Embassy awards Carpet Museum director

By Azernews

By Laman Ismayilova

The French Embassy in Baku has awarded the Carpet Museum director Shirin Malikova with the Order of Arts and Literature. 

The Order of Arts and Letters is a French award administered by the country's Culture Ministry. The order is awarded to persons who have distinguished themselves by their achievements in the artistic or literary field, or by the contribution they have made to the art and literature in France and worldwide. 

In his speech, the French Ambassador to Azerbaijan Zacharie Gross stressed that Shirin Malikova is a prominent representative of Azerbaijani culture.

Since 2016, she serves as the director of the Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum which meets high international standards. 

The Ambassador emphasized that Shirin Malikova is the curator of more than 20 exhibitions, the author of 11 monographs, articles in the field of art, etc. Within the framework of cooperation with the French Embassy, ??she took part in holding major exhibitions.

Speaking about the development of relations between France and Azerbaijan in the field of culture and art, the diplomat noted that in 2019, the exhibition "Azerbaijan's cultural heritage in the Louvre Museum" was held at the Carpet Museum as part of UNESCO's 43rd session. 

Three unique exhibits stored at the Louvre Museum were presented in Baku for the first time.

In 2020, an exhibition titled "New Discoveries: New Motifs in Azerbaijani Carpet Weaving" was held at the UNESCO Headquarters in Paris.

Zacharie Gross also noted that Shirin Malikova will participate in a cultural program in May. Within the framework of the program, the Carpet Museum director will pay a visit to a number of cultural institutions in France.

Shirin Malikova expressed her gratitude for the award of the honorary order to her. She noted that cultural ties between Azerbaijan and France are developing at a high level.

The Carpet Museum director underlined that numerous exhibitions, concerts and other events are traditionally being held in France with the support of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation.

In conclusion, Shirin Malikova stressed that Azerbaijani art, in particular carpets, is of great interest in France.