We’re taking you to Nukus — a city where art lives far beyond the museum walls. This is a new article by our author Sophie Ibbotson, Uzbekistan Tourism Ambassador to the UK. You can read her previous story about why spring is the perfect season to visit Uzbekistan via the link.
Sophie Ibbotson, Uzbekistan Tourism Ambassador to the UK,
@uzambassador
Too few visitors venture west to Karakalpakstan, and those who do scarcely scratch the surface of the republic and all it has to offer. The effort required to get here is richly rewarded, however, as all manner of treasures await in Nukus: City of Art.
I started believing Nukus is the Art Capital of Central Asia last summer. The Savitsky Museum has long been on my radar, and I’ve visited dozens of times over the last decade or so, but a single attraction is not enough to validate a slogan and attract the large number of tourists which Karakalpakstan’s nascent tourism sector craves. Thankfully, Igor Savitsky’s legacy permeates far beyond the walls of the museum he founded, stretching out into the mohallas and microdistricts of the capital.
The Savitsky Museum is, of course, the anchor of art tourism in Nukus. The international reputation of its Russian and Turkestan Avant Garde art collection is a major draw, and the two new galleries — opened in 2024 and 2025 respectively — finally give these precious artworks the dramatic backdrops and interpretation they deserve. The museum’s Director, Gulbahor Izentaeva, is a determined champion for Karakalpakstan’s applied arts and Karakalpak artists, as well as the more famous works. If you want to really appreciate and understand their significance, you can book a private Director’s Tour.
Uzbekistan’s Arts and Culture Development Fund is investing in the Savitsky Museum’s buildings and supporting exhibitions abroad, most recently in Italy, Russia, and Kazakhstan, and with France and the UK in the pipeline. The paintings have become brand ambassadors for Karakalpakstan, a first taste tempting art lovers to come to Nukus and see rather more of the collection.
Currently, only a small proportion of Savitsky’s ethnographic collection is on display, but that will change after the planned renovation and reopening of Building 1. In the meantime, it is well worth visiting the Regional History Museum, which is a five-minute walk away. A full-size Karakalpak yurt, complete with all the traditional decorations, greets visitors in the foyer. Upstairs, there are portraits of historic heroes of Karakalpakstan; ancient finds from the republic’s remarkable kalas — fortresses, and other archaeological sites; and some excellent examples of Karakalpak textiles and jewellery. A museum guide can explain to you the weaving and dyeing techniques, the significance of different motifs, and how and when each item of clothing was worn. Such insights are important in understanding the intangible cultural heritage of the Karakalpak people, which is distinct from that of neighbouring communities, even if certain aspects are shared in common.
One of Savitsky’s objectives when establishing his museum in the 1960s was to inspire future generations of Karakalpak artists. He wanted to show local people how very varied art forms could be. It worked. With his guidance, Karakalpak artists like Jollibay Izentaev, Sarsenbay Baybosinov, and Bazarbay Serekeev developed their skills, mastered their respective styles, and gained acclaim. Their careers straddled the Soviet and post-Independence periods, and they’re now regarded as the grandfathers of Karakalpak art. Serekeev’s former studio has been preserved and is open to the public as a house museum, alongside a modern gallery of his oil paintings and painted gourds; and Baybosinov — still alive and painting every day — welcomes visitors to his studio, too.
The bright young things of Karakalpakstan’s contemporary art scene weren’t even born when Savitsky died in 1984. However, there is no doubt of his ongoing impact: the Avant Garde influence is strong. Serekeev’s son, Bakhtiyar Serekeev, is one of the co-founders of the Nukus School, and has built an enviable and well deserved reputation at home and abroad. When he’s in Nukus, you can meet him in his studio, where he paints distinctive, sometimes quite nightmarish figurative works in oils and acrylics.
For softer, in many ways more accessible, works, I’m a big fan of the Impressionist painter Polotjan Abdreimov, who lives with his mother, wife, and three young children on the northern edge of Nukus. His evocative landscape paintings brilliantly capture scenes of rural life in Karakalpakstan, including the flora, ancient ruins, and ever-shrinking water supply. Abdreimov also paints portraits, often of friends or community leaders, but he also accepts commissions if you’re keen to see yourself as an oil on canvas.
Back in central Nukus, there is plenty of art in public spaces, so keep your eyes peeled as you walk and drive around. The most impressive of the Soviet era mosaics is on the building alongside the old Tashkent Hotel. It depicts scenes of Karakalpak life, urban and rural, traditional and modern, in the late Soviet period. Elsewhere, you can see a mosaic of a young violinist on the facade of the music school; geometric and zoomorphic patterns on apartment blocks; and an attractive flight-themed mural near the airport. The interior of the Berdakh Museum of Karakalpak Literature is painted with life-size murals, too, showing yurts, Karakalpaks in traditional dress, etc.
Slowly, Karakalpak arts and crafts are making their mark on locally-sold souvenirs and gifts. The Savitsky Museum’s shop now sells tote bags, posters, and postcards with images from their collection, as well as some small handicrafts. Mir Souvenir and My Shapan stock Karakalpak coats and hats, and the latter also sells funky t-shirts by Karakalpak brand Aynalayin. The designs of cats in Karakalpak costumes are particularly cool.
Nukus’ art scene is also influencing the city’s hospitality sector. Hotel Jipek Joli Art opened its doors in summer 2024, and the rooms and public spaces are decorated with original paintings and objets d’art. Sofram restaurant is equally Instagrammable, with lanterns made from painted gourds, brightly coloured kilims, and murals on several walls. Thankfully, the Turkish food Sofram serves is as fabulous as the decor, and they also have excellent ice cream, a real treat after a hot day’s sightseeing.
