This annual major event has drawn increasing international attention to Central Asia and is seen as a crossroads of arts, tradition and modernity. Now in its fifth year, the project promises amazingly diverse events and is attended by international celebrities.

This year the Art Week will present exhibitions of young famous artists; défilé by Uzbek and foreign fashion designers; a Festival of National Dress; a theatre festival, cultural conferences, contests for budding designers; sporting dance competitions; master classes by art and fashion professionals; charitable events and performances by international pop stars. The Art Week kicked off with an International Photo Biennale.

International guests expected to attend the fifth Art Week include: prominent artists Catherine Metais (France), Marco Perego (Italy) and Alexander Ishenko (Russia); fashion designers Domenico Vacca (USA), Agatha Ruiz De La Prada and Fernando Lemoniez (Spain), Helen Yarmak, president of Helen Yarmak Fashion House, and Igor Chapurin (Russia); Magali Raineri (France), Chisato Tsumori, Naoshi Sawayanagi (Japan), Laura Miles (UK), representatives of Chanel and Stephane Rolland fashion houses (France), Brioni, Max Mara, Salvatore Ferragamo fashion houses (Italy), Balmain (France), Basso & Brooke (UK), Chopard and de Grisogono luxury jewellers (Switzerland); tenor Jose Carreras (Spain); music groups Gypsy Kings (France), Montefiori Cocktail (Italy), Serebro (Russia), music duo Modjo (France), DJ Tom Boxer (Romania), People’s Artist of Russia, scriptwriter, film director and Cannes Film Festival winner Pavel Lungin, actor Andrei Panin (Russia), film director Lee Hun (China); media representatives: ITAR-TASS director general Vasiliy Ignatenko (Russia); President of Les Editions Jalou, Marie-José Susskind-Jalou, head of L’Officiel Benjamin Eymere (France), TV host and journalists Andrei Malakhov (Russia), Токуо Fashion Express NHK World producer Naoki Yokowa (Japan), Fashion Channel News producer Hiroshi Sugai (Japan), fashion journalist Oda Akira (Japan), Vice-President of RTVI broadcasting Giorgi Tsikhiseli (USA), president of the Russian-American Foundation Marina Kovaleva (USA), Senior Director of Japan Fashion Week Kenji Yamazaki; musician, music critic, producer, poet and writer Huang Liaoan, vice-president of the China Fashion Association professor Yuanfen Liu, and the president of the National Arts Club Aldon James (USA) among others.

The Art Week ‘Style.Uz’ is organised by the Fund Forum, a public foundation dedicated to developing international cultural exchange, supporting talented youth and children, crafts dynasties and art professionals through grants, scholarships, contests, festivals, exhibitions and other events in Uzbekistan and abroad. “Style.Uz”, which aims to help develop international cooperation in arts and to support arts professionals, is held with support from major local and international organizations such as the British Council, Victor Hugo French Cultural Centre and the Japan Foundation.

The Art Week is a unique opportunity for young talents with limited financial resources to demonstrate their skills by presenting their collections on the same platform with internationally known brands and getting an opportunity for further professional growth. The Week also includes master classes and makes available grants for the talented youth and textile and weaving masters working to revive ancient fabric-making techniques, etc.

Previous ‘Style.Uz’ Weeks have been attended by world-famous top fashion designers, jewellery and fashion brand owners, influential people in fashion, arts and culture, editors of international glossy magazines, international media representatives, and showbiz stars from Austria, UK, France, Italy, Spain, India, Germany, Switzerland, Japan, China, USA, Russia and other countries.

More specifically, the front-row celebrities have included the likes of Julio Iglesias, Sting, Montserrat Caballe, Rod Stewart, David and Katie Guetta, Chopard co-president Caroline Gruosi-Scheufele, de Grisogono founder and president Fawaz Gruosi (Switzerland), fashion legend Takada Kenzo, designers Pascal Morabito (France), Vyacheslav Zaitsev, Valentin Yudashkin, Masha Tsigal, Alena Akhmadullina, Yulia Dalakyan, Denis Simachev, Helen Yarmak and Vardui Nazaryan (Russia), as well as representatives of foremost fashion houses such as Oscar de la Renta (USA), Valentino (Italy), Sonia Rykiel, Smalto, Féraud, Inès de la Fressange, Revillon, Guy Laroche (France), Wolford (Austria), Sisi Wasabi (Germany) and DSQUARED2 (Italy).