Artist
Nazira Karimi
Nazira Karimi is an artist and filmmaker based in Almaty, Kazakhstan. Her research-driven practice examines collective memory, grief, and the environmental transformations of Central Asia, with a focus on the aftershocks of war and broader political-historical contexts in the region. Working across film and installation, she engages with oral histories, archival materials, and site-specific landscapes to reimagine historical memory.
Nazira’s recent projects include Hafta, a seven-part monumental video piece addressing the idea of extinction and its translation through the continuous episodes of Central Asia’s colonization, and Pas az Sukuti Dastarkhon, a sculptural video installation reflecting on grief, voice, and collective memory.
Her work has been presented internationally, including at the 61st International Art Exhibition of the Venice Biennale (2026), where she participated in the Collateral Exhibition Turandot: To the Daughters of the East, the inaugural Bukhara Biennial Recipes for Broken Hearts (2025), the 60th International Art Exhibition Foreigners Everywhere at the Venice Biennale (2024), and documenta fifteen, where she contributed to the public program of the DAVRA Research Group (2022). She has participated in multiple artistic residencies and exhibited her films and installations across Asia and Europe. Nazira studied scenography and painting in Almaty and earned her Magistra degree in Vienna in 2024.
She is the editor-in-chief and co-founder of Ruyò Journal, and a founding member of Mata Collective. She is also an Advisory Board Member of Tamyr Art Lab (2026–2028).
Nazira’s recent projects include Hafta, a seven-part monumental video piece addressing the idea of extinction and its translation through the continuous episodes of Central Asia’s colonization, and Pas az Sukuti Dastarkhon, a sculptural video installation reflecting on grief, voice, and collective memory.
Her work has been presented internationally, including at the 61st International Art Exhibition of the Venice Biennale (2026), where she participated in the Collateral Exhibition Turandot: To the Daughters of the East, the inaugural Bukhara Biennial Recipes for Broken Hearts (2025), the 60th International Art Exhibition Foreigners Everywhere at the Venice Biennale (2024), and documenta fifteen, where she contributed to the public program of the DAVRA Research Group (2022). She has participated in multiple artistic residencies and exhibited her films and installations across Asia and Europe. Nazira studied scenography and painting in Almaty and earned her Magistra degree in Vienna in 2024.
She is the editor-in-chief and co-founder of Ruyò Journal, and a founding member of Mata Collective. She is also an Advisory Board Member of Tamyr Art Lab (2026–2028).