Tokay Mammadov: A Pillar of Azerbaijani Sculptural Tradition
Tokay Mammadov, a distinguished People’s Artist of Azerbaijan and sculptor, was born on July 18, 1927, in Baku. His father, Habib Mammadov was a Candidate of Technical Sciences, and his mother Ziver Mammadova, was the first female sculptor of the East. His passion for sculpture was inherited from his mother, and he received his first sculpting lessons from her.
In 1942, he enrolled in the Baku Art School named after Azim Azimzade. After completing his third year at the Baku Art School, he moved to Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg) and was admitted to the Sculpture Faculty of the I. Repin Academy of Arts. During his studies there, he trained under prominent Russian masters such as V. Senayski, A. Matveyev, and M. Kerzin. While in Leningrad, Tokay Mammadov was elected as a member of the Union of Artists. During his time at the academy, the busts he created were exhibited in numerous art shows and highly praised. After returning to Baku, he began teaching at the Azim Azimzadə Baku Art School. In 1947, he sculpted a portrait bust of Latif Karimov, a renowned Azerbaijani carpet artist, and this early work of the young sculptor received significant acclaim.
In 1948, at an exhibition organized in Moscow, he displayed a portrait of Mirza Kazim bey, the founder of Russian Oriental studies and an Azerbaijani scholar. Despite working not from a live model but from a photograph, this artwork—like all of Tokay Mammadov’s portrait works—consistently achieved a remarkably realistic effect.
Tokay Mammadov pioneered the use of wood as a sculptural medium in Azerbaijani art. His wooden portraits masterfully capture the psychological depth of their subjects. In 1953, he carved Azerbaijan’s classical poet Nizami Ganjavi in wood—marking the first such representation of the poet in this medium. Among his wooden portraits are those depicting “Samad Vurghun”, “People’s Artist Gazanfar Khaligov”, statesman, physician, and writer “Nariman Narimanov”, the long-lived Azerbaijani “Shirali Muslumov”, and other notable figures.
Tokay Mammadov succeeded in revealing the inner qualities of people by creating hundreds of portraits from marble, bronze, and plaster materials. He created bust portraits of geniuses such as: Uzeyir Hajibeyov - the founder of the opera genre in Azerbaijan and a musician-scholar; People’s Artist Rustam Mustafayev; our female artist Vajiha Samadova; writer Suleyman Rahimov; Polish composer Frederic Chopin; and Austrian composer W.A. Mozart.
Tokay Mammadov is also the author of several tombstone monuments. In 1956, he created the tombstone monument of musician-scholar, calligrapher and artist Mir Mohsun Navvab in Shusha city. The sculptor also created the tombstone monument of Bulbul, founder of Azerbaijan’s first professional vocal art.
Tokay Mammadov is the creator of sculptures depicting Muhammad Fuzuli, Nasimi, and Koroghlu. He worked on the image of Koroghlu, the hero of our national epic, for more than ten years. Successfully portraying the hero with national coloring, he managed to depict him on horseback as a true warrior and commander.
Tokay Mammadov also created remarkable examples in the field of relief sculpture. The most famous among them is the portrait of Hero of the Soviet Union Mehdi Huseynzadeh. This work has been successfully exhibited in international exhibitions and highly praised. His works have been honored with awards from many countries.
Tokay Mammadov during the Soviet period was People’s Artist of Azerbaijan SSR (1973), Honored Art Worker of Azerbaijan SSR (1962), Corresponding Member of USSR Academy of Arts (1975), Professor (1977), Laureate of USSR State Prize (1978), Chairman of the Board of Azerbaijan Artists’ Union (1970-1972), Corresponding Member of Russian Academy of Arts.
During the years of independent Azerbaijan Republic, Tokay Mammadov’s creativity has always been in the center of attention and constantly highly appreciated. He was awarded with the highest awards of independent Azerbaijan Republic - the “Sharaf” and “Shohrat” orders, and deemed worthy of the “Honorary Diploma of the President of Azerbaijan Republic”.
Tokay Mammadov passed away on May 2, 2018, and was buried in the Second Honor Alley.
Recommended literature:
- Tokay Məmmədov : heykəltəraşlıq = Tokay Mammadov : graphic arts / layihənin rəh. Ç. Fərzəliyev ; mətnin müəl. Y. Şeyxov ; ing. dilinə tərc.: N. Əliyev, Ə. Məlikova. - Bakı : Şərq-Qərb, 2013. - 104 s.
- Quliyev, Əsəd Məhəmməd oğlu. XX əsr Azərbaycan incəsənəti haqqında oçerklər / Ə. M. Quliyev ; elmi red. K. M. Əliyeva ; ön sözün müəl. Ö. H. Eldarov ; Azərbaycan Respublikası Mədəniyyət və Turizm Nazirliyi. - Bakı : Təhsil, 2012. - 168 s.
- Tokay Məmmədov - heykəltəraş = Токай Мамедов - скульптор / Azərbaycan Respublikası Mədəniyyət və Turizm Nazirliyi ; mətnin müəl. Y. Şeyxov ; red. E. Əliyev. - Bakı : Şərq-Qərb, n. i. y. - 248 s.