Baku hosts ICOM conference

On October 10-12, 2018, Baku hosts a conference Decorative Arts and Interiors of two international committees of the International Council of Museums (ICOM) – the International Committee for Museums and Collections of Decorative Arts and Design (ICDAD), and the International Committee for Historic House Museums (DEMHIST).
The conference is organized by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Azerbaijan, ICOM Azerbaijan National Committee, the Azerbaijan Carpet Museum, the International Council of Museums (ICOM), the International Committee for Museums and Collections of Decorative Arts and Design (ICDAD), and the International Committee for Historic House Museums (DEMHIST) within the support of the Azerbaijan National Museum of Art, Icherisheher State Historical and Architectural Reserve, the Bulbul Memorial Museum, and Az-Granata company.
42 participants from 14 countries – Azerbaijan, Austria, Italy, Portugal, Germany, Lebanon, the Netherlands, Japan, USA, India, Egypt, the Czech Republic, Georgia, and Turkey, joined the conference. President of ICOM Dr Suay Aksoy is among the distinguished guests.
The official opening ceremony of the conference was held on the 10th of October at the Azerbaijan Carpet Museum. Shirin Melikova, Director of the Azerbaijan Carpet Museum, Sevda Mammadaliyeva, Deputy Minister of Culture of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Suay Aksoy, President of ICOM, Helena Koenigsmarková, ICDAD Board President, and Elsa Rodrigues, President of DEMHIST, welcomed the guests with speeches.
The conference included academic sessions with a number of prominent domestic and foreign scientists. There were papers on the classical interior design of Azerbaijani houses, the role of textile in the interior, the importance of museums of decorative art in the modern world.
On the same day, a presentation of the book Artistic Embroidery from the Azerbaijan Carpet Museum’s Collection by Shirin Y. Melikova, published with the contribution received from UNESCO under the Programme of Participation in the activities of Member States for 2016-2017, was held.
After the sessions, the guests got acquainted with the Azerbaijan Carpet Museum’s collection, visited the Icherisheher State Historical and Architectural Reserve, and watched the play Arshin Mal Alan at the Baku Marionette Theater.