Kazakh Artisan Modernizes Traditional Aitys Performance During Venice Biennale Artists' Residency
From June 12 to July 12, 2025, the Italian Institute of Culture in Almaty will be hosting the solo installation "Thin Walls / Aitys / Lost in Translation" by contemporary Kazakh artist Syrlybek Bekbotayev. This exhibition marks the final presentation of Bekbotayev’s participation in the Jeruiyq art residency, part of the Kazakhstan National Pavilion at the 60th Venice Biennale.
Bekbotayev's installation reimagines the ancient Kazakh musical-poetic duel, aitys, within a cramped urban apartment setting. The space is divided into rooms using thin, semi-transparent cellophane film walls, each representing different aspects of aitys: an unfinished performance in the bedroom, political commentary in the living room, and kitchen-table conversations overheard across walls. This spatial arrangement invokes a sense of claustrophobia and constant surveillance, drawing attention to the complexities of social hierarchies and intimacy in post-Soviet urban living.
The project bridges Kazakhstan’s rich poetic heritage with contemporary issues of privacy, urbanity, and media, using the structure of aitys to examine how voices are heard, lost, or transformed in today’s society. Bekbotayev draws from his personal experience transitioning from rural Kazakhstan, where the steppe’s openness made one feel isolated in the vastness, to city life, where neighbours’ everyday sounds and disputes are just meters away behind thin walls. This personal lens informs the work’s exploration of boundaries—both physical and cultural—and the challenges of translation between tradition and modernity.
"Thin Walls / Aitys / Lost in Translation" offers Almaty audiences a rare chance to engage with one of Kazakhstan’s contributions to the 60th Venice Biennale. The exhibition is free to the public and is photographed by The Astana Times. It brings global attention to contemporary Kazakh art that is rooted in tradition yet challenges it on the international stage.
Bekbotayev expresses interest in parallel, alternative histories to question immutable aspects. He views urban interiors as stages for cultural production and reflection. Aitys, according to Bekbotayev, is a living tradition deeply rooted in Kazakh identity, and he sees it as a metaphor for communication, observation, and social interaction within modern life.
[1] https://www.venicebiennale.org/en/archivio/60th-international-art-exhibition/artists/syrlybek-bekbotayev [2] https://www.theastanatimes.com/2025/06/thin-walls-aitys-lost-in-translation-opening-at-italian-institute-of-culture/ [3] https://www.kazakhstanpavilion.com/en/residencies/jeruiyq-art-residency/ [4] https://www.theastanatimes.com/2025/06/thin-walls-aitys-lost-in-translation-explores-social-hierarchies-in-post-soviet-urban-living/ [5] https://www.theastanatimes.com/2025/06/thin-walls-aitys-lost-in-translation-bridges-kazakhstans-rich-poetic-heritage-with-contemporary-issues/
[1] The exhibition, "Thin Walls / Aitys / Lost in Translation" by Syrlybek Bekbotayev, not only brings a piece of contemporary Kazakh art to the attention of Almaty audiences, but also showcases how this art form connects with home-and-garden settings, as the installation reimagines the ancient Kazakh musical-poetic duel within a cramped urban apartment.
[2] Furthermore, Bekbotayev's work isn't limited to the confines of the art world; it delves into social lifestyle issues, exploring the complexities of social hierarchies and intimacy in post-Soviet urban living, thus highlighting the relevance of aitys in modern life—a metaphor for communication, observation, and social interaction.
