"Seven beauties" exhibition dedicated to 880th anniversary of Nizami Ganjavi opens and foundation stone for monument to Uzeyir Hajibayli laid in St. Petersburg

Saint Petersburg, January 27, AZERTAC The "Seven beauties" exhibition dedicated to the 880th anniversary of the great Azerbaijani poet and thinker Nizami Ganjavi opened at the Marble Palace in St. Petersburg on January 26. Speaking at the opening of the exhibition, Assistant to the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Anar Alakbarov said that cultural ties are the shortest way to bring peoples closer. "Our countries are united by centuries-old traditions of friendship, brotherhood and good neighborliness. We try to strengthen these relations from year to year. With their exemplary relationships, the heads of our states contribute to strengthening cooperation in all areas, including the humanitarian sphere," Anar Alakbarov said. The Assistant to the President recalled that one of the first representative offices of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation opened in Russia. "The Foundation has implemented many projects in the fields of education, health and environment. However, most of these projects are in the field of culture," Anar Alakbarov said. Addressing the event, Azerbaijan`s Ambassador to Russia Polad Bulbuloghlu thanked the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, as well as the leadership of the Russian Museum and the Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum for organizing the spectacular exhibition. Grigory Goldovsky, acting deputy director general of the Russian Museum, said the exhibition features works of applied art, video installations, rare miniatures, wedding decorations and other exhibits. “This exhibition shows the original diversity of oriental culture, which tells about the period of Nizami Ganjavi and the peculiarities of his work.” The exposition of the "Seven beauties" exhibition, organized with the support of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, the Ministry of Culture of Azerbaijan, the Embassy of the Republic of Azerbaijan in the Russian Federation and the Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum, includes exhibits of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum and Azerbaijan State Museum of Musical Culture. The exhibition will last until May 9. A groundbreaking ceremony for a monument to the great Azerbaijani composer Uzeyir Hajibayli was also held in St. Petersburg. The monument will be erected in the garden named after Uzeyir Hajibayli with the support of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and the Saint Petersburg government. The solemn ceremony was attended by Assistant to the President of Azerbaijan Anar Alakbarov, Ambassador Polad Bulbuloghlu, St. Petersburg`s Vice-Governor Anatoly Poveliy, Deputy Chairman of the Legislative Assembly Marina Shishkina, Deputy Head of the Vyborg District Administration Arina Artyomova, Chairman of the Azerbaijani Diaspora in St. Petersburg Vagif Mamishov. The author of the monument is sculptor, academician of the Russian Academy of Arts Aydin Zeynalov.