From February 4 to February 7 of this year, the annual international trade exhibition “Creativeworld-2023” was held in the German city of Frankfurt. It was attended by designers, artisans, representatives of art academies, bloggers from more than 160 countries, including Tajikistan.
Creativeworld is an exhibition dedicated to the world of art, handicraft and other arts and crafts segments. The motto of the fair is: “Create something exciting, beautiful, unusual, new and colorful.”
Each year, Creativeworld attracts over 8,650 visitors from across the globe to Frankfurt. The special role of Creativeworld is that it becomes a place where national and international manufacturers present their latest products.
This year, 10 talented artisans from Central Asia took part in the exhibition. The participants presented their exclusive works, made exclusively by hand.
Their participation in the exhibition was supported by USAID’s Central Asia Trade Program and the US Department of Commerce’s Commercial Law Development Program (CLDP).
Within the framework of the exhibition, a seminar was held for the participants to prepare for this event. Leslie Robertson, head of the Center for Cultural Heritage of the Smithsonian Institution USA, took part in this seminar.
“I was invited to come to Frankfurt right before the start of the show to help exhibitors prepare for the event so that they have the necessary materials, catalogs and business cards if clients are interested,” she said.
According to her, work is underway on a project that involves women artisans in the region.
“Working with CLDP and USAID as an education consultant, I share my knowledge and experience with women artisans in Central Asia. A large project is currently underway that involves 50 women from all 5 countries, 10 representatives from each country. Together they are working on creating a product catalog, working on marketing strategies, conducting a series of seminars and much more,” said Leslie Robertson.
Tajikistan was represented by Dehai Gulzar LLC and the Munir brand.
The owner of the handicraft company “Dehai Gulzar” Nigina Ikromi introduced the visitors to the national Tajik fabrics. She presented products from Tajik atlas and adras – scarves, skullcaps, pillows, textiles and other national paraphernalia.
“Working with Nigina Ikromi both as a teacher and as a project partner, I am very pleased to see that she is promoting national handicrafts at such a high level. The use of raw materials such as Tajik silk, cotton in textiles is a unique story. It was nice to realize that natural dyes and eco-dyeing practices are used to create beautiful Tajik fabrics, which is very commendable,” said Leslie Robertson.
Another representative of Tajikistan was the embroiderer Munira Akilova, the founder of the domestic brand “Munir”.
At the event, she presented the national decorative textile – suzani. In her works, the girl seeks to revive traditional embroidery. More than 50 women from villages are involved in fabric production, most of whom belong to vulnerable segments of the population.
CLDP (Commercial Law Development Program) is part of the US Department of State for Commerce. This program exists to empower the women of Central Asia, promote the development of their business, get acquainted with marketing experts for a better understanding of product promotion.
The goal of USAID’s Central Asia Trade Activities is to improve trade links in the region to boost economic growth and expand economic opportunities in Central Asia.
Also, the USAID Trade Program in Central Asia aims to increase women’s economic participation and income generation by improving the marketing of women artisans in the global market through their participation in the international exhibition CreativeWorld
source: asiaplustj
