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Gayane Umerova is dedicated to developing the culture sector in Uzbekistan.
As chairperson of the Uzbekistan Art and Culture Development Foundation (ACDF) and Deputy Head of the Department of Social Development of the Presidential Administration, Gayane Umerova is at the helm of building Uzbekistan’s cultural infrastructure. Her efforts are bringing the nation’s art, artists, and cultural heritage into the global spotlight. Currently, she is overseeing the restoration and development of the Centre for Contemporary Arts in Tashkent, poised to become a new cultural hub for the region. She is also driving the construction of the new State Museum of Arts designed by Tadao Ando, hosting the World Conference on Creative Economy in October 2024, and is commissioner for Uzbekistan’s participation in Expo 2025 Osaka among other significant projects.
Committed to boosting Uzbekistan’s prominence on the international culture scene, Umerova serves as the Chairperson of the National Commission of Uzbekistan on UNESCO Affairs under the Cabinet of Ministers and as the commissioner of the Uzbekistan Pavilion at the Venice Biennale 2021. Her public service commitment is evident in her dedication to creating opportunities for young people in Uzbekistan’s cultural sector and fostering a cultural economy that unites communities and generations.
Throughout her career, Gayane Umerova has tirelessly worked to elevate Uzbekistan’s art on the global stage. She has been instrumental in bringing pioneering exhibitions of Uzbek art and culture to prestigious institutions worldwide and showcasing the works of major international artists in Uzbekistan.
Under Umerova's leadership, Uzbekistan’s cultural heritage was first showcased at the Louvre and the Arab World Institute in 2022. She also organized an exhibition of archaeological artifacts at the James Simon Gallery in Berlin in 2023, led two exhibitions in China and brought the Design Biennale ‘Craft of Uzbekistan: Traditions in Threads’ to Doha in 2024. For the first time, Uzbekistan: Avant-Garde in the Desert ‘Light and Colour’ and Uzbekistan: Avant-Garde in the Desert ‘Form and Symbol’ exhibitions are currently on display at the Uffizi Gallery and Ca Foscari. A groundbreaking exhibition on Uzbekistan’s culture and heritage, ‘Silk Roads,’ is set to open at The British Museum in autumn 2024.
Umerova also played a pivotal role in bringing the exhibitions ‘Henry Moore: Master of Graphics’ (2015) and ‘The New Past: British Contemporary Arts’ (2016) to Uzbekistan. She oversaw the first Uzbek contemporary art auction in partnership with Christie’s in 2012, held at the Savitskiy’s Museum in Nukus, Uzbekistan.
Previously, Umerova served as senior curator at the Art Gallery of Uzbekistan and worked with leading global auction houses Christie’s and Sotheby’s. She also curated the 6th Tashkent International Biennial of Contemporary Art.
Gayane holds an MA in Art Business from Sotheby’s Institute of Art and was a PhD candidate in Anthropology at The University of Oxford.