Saodat Ismailova: Melted Into the Sun

Saodat Ismailova’s practice is rooted in the folklore, ancestral knowledge and collective memory she grew up surrounded by in Uzbekistan. Part of the first generation of Central Asian artists to come of age after the collapse of the Soviet Union, she has become a powerful voice in reimagining the region’s identity. Her films trace the overlapping histories of Central Asia, from its Zoroastrian roots to Islamic traditions, and later, the Soviet era. Melted Into the Sun is inspired by the elusive figure of Al-Muqanna (‘The Veiled One’), an 8th-century mystic and political rebel from southern Central Asia. His story is layered with speculations and contradictions: celebrated by Soviet historians as a ‘proto-socialist’, but considered a charlatan in Muslim cultures. The film follows the echoes of his legacy through the places supposedly touched by his presence. Legend has it that if Al-Muqanna’s veil was lifted, his knowledge would radiate a blinding light. Ismailova uses the veil as a symbol of myth and mystery to consider the instability of knowledge and meaning, and the ways histories are continually made and remade.