The official opening of the group exhibition “Grotesque” took place at D’ART Gallery in Baku’s White City on October 31, 2026, as part of the “Fly to Baku. Sense the Future NOW” festival. Bringing together works by some of Azerbaijan’s most distinguished painters and sculptors, the exhibition is a conceptual art project exploring the artistic language, aesthetic and philosophical dimensions, and diverse manifestations of the grotesque in visual art.
The exhibition features 28 artworks by 14 artists representing different generations and artistic movements in Azerbaijani visual art. The collection includes paintings, graphic works and sculptures by renowned Azerbaijani artists Javad Mirjavadov, Togrul Javadov, Rasim Babayev, Kamal Ahmad, Arif Huseynov, Sirus Mirzazade and Ashraf Heybatov, alongside sculptures by Omar Eldarov, Khanlar Ahmadov, Natiq Aliyev, Zakir Ahmadov, Mahmud Rustamov, Nureli Shahbazov and Khagan Ahmadov. The opening ceremony featured addresses by Dilarə Muzaffarli, founder and director of D’ART Gallery, art historian and curator of the exhibition; People's Artist of Azerbaijan Arif Huseynov; Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Brazil to Azerbaijan Bernard Jorge Leopold de Garcia Klingl; Rafael Gulmammadov, head of the Baku Art Centre; and exhibition coordinator Sofio Dvalishvili.
In her opening remarks, Dilarə Muzaffarli welcomed the guests and introduced the project's concept, outlining the aesthetic and philosophical significance of the grotesque in visual art and its various manifestations in Azerbaijani artistic traditions. She explained that the subject is closely connected to her academic research, highlighting the integration of theoretical scholarship and curatorial practice as one of the exhibition's defining features. According to the curator, the project's central objective is to explore the different artistic possibilities of the grotesque in the works of prominent Azerbaijani artists and bring together creations from different historical periods and artistic movements within a unified conceptual framework.
Muzaffarli also expressed her special appreciation to Leyla Aliyeva, Vice-President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and founder and head of the IDEA Public Union, whose vision inspired the festival. She thanked Aliyeva for her attention to the project and continued support for the arts and creative initiatives. The curator emphasised the importance of international cultural platforms in promoting Azerbaijani art and introducing the work of local artists to wider audiences.
Speaking at the ceremony, People's Artist of Azerbaijan Arif Huseynov highlighted D’ART Gallery's contribution to promoting Azerbaijani visual art, preserving the creative legacy of artists and showcasing works representing different generations. Commenting on the exhibition's theme, he described the grotesque as a distinctive artistic language and praised the initiative to explore its manifestations through the works of Azerbaijani painters and sculptors. Brazil's Ambassador to Azerbaijan, Bernard Jorge Leopold de Garcia Klingl, spoke about the universal language of art, noting striking similarities between the works on display and Brazilian modernism.
I see many similarities with Brazilian modernism in this exhibition. The paintings are incredibly vivid and colourful, characterised by great energy, dynamism and powerful expression. They are truly beautiful works of art.
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