After obtaining her MA degree in Fine Art Painting from Azerbaijan State Academy of Fine Arts in 2002 Tora Aghabayova had lived in Shanghai, China and currently resides in Berlin, Germany. Her classical art training is epitomised in detail oriented draughtsmanship in which one may trace both Soviet realism, Renaissance and Romanticism references. Her artworks, be it a depiction of imaginary creatures populating the Caspian Sea or landscapes, emit positive energy and humor. Many of Tora’s works represent female gaze on sexuality that instead of objectification playfully use visual language of an Orientalist painting to depict quotidian life scenes. Her works featured in the Azerbaijani National Pavilion at the 52nd Venice Biennale in 2007, and group exhibitions at the Manege Central Exhibition Hall in 1999, Centre for Contemporary Art, Stavanger in 2010, PERMM Museum in 2011 and 2015, Voluntary Art Liaison, Berlin in 2018 and Cyprus Museum of Modern Arts in 2019, which acquired her works for the permanent collection. Tora took part in the Fly to Baku travelling exhibition (2011–2012) and Candy Mountains and Oil Coasts exhibition at PERMM Museum (2015), Off The Velvet Chest at Triumph Gallery in Moscow and SMENA in Kazan, Russia and CAFE AVARICE AND GENEROSITY in GalerieDix9 Hélène Lacharmoise (2019) dedicated to Azerbaijan’s contemporary art scene. Since 2019 Tora has been curating an artist project Flat of a Rich Friend.
Tandem Künstler:in – Mirjam Kroker
Das Projekt “The Assembly of Friendship” wird gefördert durch das Auswärtige Amt im Rahmen des Programms “Ausbau der Zusammenarbeit mit der Zivilgesellschaft in den Ländern der Östlichen Partnerschaft und Russland”
