Abay village, South Kazakhstan region 1941-2023

(1941, Abay – 2023, Almaty) One of the pioneers of abstraction in Kazakhstan, Kenzhebay Duisenbayev was a seminal figure in Kazakh painting. He graduated from the Tashkent State Theatre and Art Institute, in 1972 and after eleven years in Uzbekistan, moved to Almaty, where he taught at the Alma-Ata Art College and Abay State Pedagogical Institute. Duisenbayev prioritised the relationship between visual elements over literal representation stating, ‘I’m not interested in the object itself. What matters is the combination of colour and form, how they are organised on the canvas.’ A pivotal encounter with Giorgio Morandi’s work in 1987 deepened his focus on still life and everyday objects. By 1986, his art was characterised by a ‘black period,’ dominated by dark hues and raw forms. In this phase, his work sought for the metaphysical inner state of objects, but also carried a trace of the uncertainty of the transitional period from Soviet Union to a new nation-state. By the early 2000s, Duisenbayev’s palette shifted into a ‘blue period,’ characterised by soft blues and luminous shades that evoke serenity and a sunlight‑infused emotional state. Composition, on view in Qonaqtar, exemplifies this phase: with minimal brushstrokes he depicts a camel and two women in front of a hut, set against a bright blue sky and a tree, conveying feeling through form rather than strict thematic interest.