Page 20 - Steppe - Aigana Gali

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“Tengri see colours as symbolic of the The process begins with an encounter and time
natural order of things. "#$, which describes all the blues and greens means ‘god given’. Tengri itself is ‘a
great-blue sky'. Sary describes all that is made of earth and all the earthly colours from yellow through red and brown. Umay is the female manifestation of Tengri, coming from earth which is Sary (yellow). So when we are alive our body is from the earth and our soul from the sky and when we die, each returns to its place, and the circle is complete. We are this circle.” This is here, in this union, where each new painting is born. By incorporating biomorphic and geometric shapes into the colour fields that were manifest in Steppe, Aigana is mirroring her own conscious evolution; coming into an awareness of self while retaining a sense of our place - and the space we create - under this ‘grey blue sky’.
This brings us to her ongoing Manifestations Art Project, which Aigana runs alongside her fine art. Inspired by the tradition of the painted Kimono and the rich heritage of textiles from Kazakhstan, she conceived of a series of wearable canvases, finished in collaboration with the client. Each commission represents a new challenge for the artist, who approaches these works as if creating for the first time.
to listen to the individual’s story; then guided by her intuition, Aigana creates a series of prototype sketches which encapsulates the individual’s essence - a poetic, symbolic vision of their character. Through this exchange, client and artist begin a journey which they share very closely, exploring all fabric, shape and colour options. Once the prototype has been approved by both parties, Aigana then hand paints this story onto the chosen textile design. The end result is an exceptional garment which represents the most intimate expression of the client, but tells their story in a subtle, beguiling way. This process touches on the great legacy of Kazakh textiles, in which the coat is the most valuable possession. For this, Aigana sees Manifestations as an art project, refocusing the consumer on the story we all carry on our back and how this can be an emblem of your ethos and a purchase that empowers you.
Nico Kos Earle
Independent curator