«The Cultural Code of the Region: An International Conference on Traditional Costume of the Caucasus is Being Held at Kabardino-Balkarian State University»

The international scientific and practical conference «Traditional Costume of the Peoples of the Caucasus. Historical and Contemporary Ethnocultural Processes» continues at the Kabardino-Balkarian State University named after Kh.M. Berbekov.

Historians, ethnographers, cultural scientists, designers, and museum specialists from the republics of the North Caucasus Federal District, Krasnodar Krai, Adygea, and federal centers are participating. The official program began on September 15 at the Madina Saralp Art Center with welcoming addresses and presentations.

The conference is organized by the Kabardino-Balkarian Regional Public Organization «Institute of Cultural Heritage and Development,» the Kabardino-Balkarian State University named after Kh. M. Berbekov, and the Kabardino-Balkarian Scientific Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The main goal is to develop and popularize scholarly knowledge about the traditional costumes of the peoples of the Caucasus, noted Madina Saralp, Director of the Institute of Cultural Heritage and Development:

«This enhanced collegial consolidation not only allows us to expand opportunities and increase the body of knowledge in the field of traditional costume research, but also to understand the context in which we exist today, what changes and transformations we can capture in the human consciousness through costume.»

Saralp announced a new project, «Mountains and Rivers,» in which conference participants will continue their research. The concept will study the traditional costumes of the Caucasus using multimedia technologies:

«The uniqueness of the project lies in the synthesis of ethnographic knowledge with modern technology. We will use 3D modeling and various technical techniques to identify taste preferences and modes of local identity. The exhibition will be presented successively in major museums and then return to the North Caucasus. The main goal is to show our students that through modern multimedia research and reimagined objects, it is possible to study the cultural code of a region.» We will present the first module of this project in Pyatigorsk.
Yakov Gordin, editor-in-chief of Zvezda magazine, historian, and publicist, sent a video message to the participants of the conference «Traditional Costume of the Peoples of the Caucasus. Historical and Modern Ethnocultural Processes.» He called the conference not only a historical and scientific event, but also a historical and moral one:

«The traditional highlander costume is a unique phenomenon. Without studying its historical significance and meaning, it is impossible to understand the complex history of the relationship between Russia and the Caucasus, the nature and organic nature of the relationship between two powerful and complementary cultures. Meanwhile, it is precisely the interaction and interpenetration of cultures that forms the basis for organic, harmonious relationships between peoples,» Gordin emphasized.
The conference speakers prepared reports on innovative approaches to tradition, new exhibition formats, and techniques for decorating and recreating traditional costume.

Natalia Kalashnikova, Head of the Department of Ethnography of Eastern, Southeastern, and Central Europe at the Russian Museum of Ethnography (RME), Doctor of Cultural Studies, thanked the organizers and presented the first report, «On the Issue of Definitions: Reconstruction—Replica—Restoration.» The expert cited examples of rethinking traditional costume in other regions of Russia, touching on the topic of promoting tourism through new design projects.

Vladimir Dmitriev, a research fellow in the leading category at the RME and Doctor of Historical Sciences, devoted his presentation to pan-Caucasian features in North Caucasian clothing. He examined each item and its gender characteristics, highlighting trends in scholarship and museum studies. He believes the meeting in Kabardino-Balkaria demonstrates that scholarship is shifting toward research.

On September 16, the conference program «Traditional Costume of the Peoples of the Caucasus: Historical and Contemporary Ethnocultural Processes» includes lectures for history and design students by leading experts.

The audience will be met by Vladimir Dmitriev, a senior research fellow at the Russian Museum of Art and Design, Doctor of Historical Sciences; Natalia Kalashnikova, Head of the Department of Ethnography of Eastern, South-Eastern, and Central Europe at the Russian Museum of Art and Design, Doctor of Cultural Studies; and Marina Blyumin, Associate Professor of the Department of Art History and Theory at St. Petersburg State University of Industrial and Technical Design, Candidate of Art History, and Head of the New Acquisitions Sector at the State Hermitage Museum.