In Brussels, the iconic Manneken Pis statue is frequently dressed in themed costumes, often reflecting cultural events or anniversaries. For example, it has appeared as Dracula and in many other themed outfits. Recently, to honor Kazakhstan Republic Day, organizers dressed the statue in a traditional Kazakh shapan, a national coat…
«California,» a blue monochrome painting by Yves Klein, sold for a record €18.4 million at a Christie’s auction in Paris. The four-meter-long work is the artist’s largest painting and one of the few to have a title. Klein completed it in 1961 and dedicated it to the state of California,…
Tchaikovsky’s «The Nutcracker» is synonymous with Christmas, its music and story woven into holiday culture. Composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky died a year after completing the score, never seeing the ballet’s rise to fame, as The Irish Times (IT) noted in a recent tribute to the timeless classic. «The Nutcracker» premiered…
Musicians, athletes and fashion enthusiasts around the globe have embraced the Italian brand Stone Island for its high-end technical jackets and distinctive compass logo. But as the brand becomes more visible among extremist groups, partly because of its ties to British football culture in the 1990s, renewed debate has emerged…
In a small Kazakh village, an English teacher captures his students’ attention through rap. Omirbek Zhankuatov, better known on social media as «Mr. Omirbek,» combines beats and rhymes to help young Kazakhstani learners improve their English skills. His blend of language lessons and hip-hop flair has recently gained popularity online,…
The Dubai chocolate bar, first introduced by Fix Chocolatier in the UAE in 2021, gained popularity after trending on TikTok in 2023. Featuring rich milk chocolate with creamy pistachio or tahini filling and crunchy kadayif pastry, it continues to fascinate dessert lovers worldwide. Thanks to unique taste and texture, Dubai-inspired…
Instagram has announced a new award, Rings, described as the platform’s equivalent of the Oscars for content creators. The prize will honor creators whose ideas and content not only attract likes but also influence culture on a larger scale. The platform will select 25 creators worldwide who, according to the…
Glenn Martens, creative director at Maison Margiela, presented his first Spring/Summer 2026 collection at Paris Fashion Week. What stood out was not just the apparel, but the show itself. It embodied the avant-garde spirit that has long defined Maison Margiela. Even though invitations for the show were shaped like recorder…
Today, Oct. 1, 2025, is Maha Navami, the ninth day of Navaratri (nine nights), one of the most significant Hindu festivals, marking the climax of Goddess Durga’s battle against Mahishasura and the impending victory of good over evil. On Maha Navami, devotees venerate Durga as Mahishasuramardini, or «slayer of Mahishasura.»…
The work of world-renowned Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama is now on view in Central Asia. The newly opened Almaty Museum of Arts has quickly captured the city’s attention, dominating social media feeds and sparking widespread conversation. Impressive in scale, the space is more than an exhibition hall — it’s a…
A viral social media video is shining a spotlight on Gulsum (Ummi-Gulsum) Asfendiyarova, the first Kazakh woman to earn a medical degree. Some viewers might even call her «Central Asia’s Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman.» Building on this recognition, the video, created with the help of artificial intelligence, tells the story…
Researchers have solved the mystery behind the bright turquoise in Jackson Pollock’s «Number 1A, 1948.» With new chemical tests, they identified the pigment as manganese blue, a synthetic color used in paints and swimming pool cement until its discontinuation in the 1990s, according to Associated Press. The nearly nine-foot-wide canvas,…
A new trailer has been released for «The Truce,» the first Kazakh-Spanish drama produced for Netflix. The film features actors from the Spanish hit series «Elite» as well as «Money Heist.» The story is inspired by true events. During Stalin’s political purges, hundreds of Spanish prisoners were held alongside Kazakhs…
China reviewed two draft laws on Monday to increase the standard Chinese use among ethnic minorities, according to the South China Morning Post. These proposals reflect Beijing’s wider campaign to promote spoken and written Mandarin. The government aims to promote the standard Chinese language in areas such as education, public…
Giorgio Armani, the legendary Italian designer who built a global fashion empire with his relaxed yet elegant tailoring, has died at the age of 91. Thursday, his company announced that Armani had passed away surrounded by family. The cause of death was not disclosed. According to a statement from the…
A long-lost masterpiece stolen during the Nazi occupation of Europe has turned up in an unexpected place: an Argentine real estate listing, according to the BBC. The painting, “Portrait of a Lady” by Italian master Giuseppe Ghislandi, vanished during World War II. It resurfaced decades later when sharp-eyed viewers noticed…
Mawlid al-Nabi, also called Milad un Nabi, marks the birth of the Prophet Muhammad and in 2025 is expected to fall around Thursday, Sept. 4, and Friday, Sept. 5. The date corresponds with the 12th of Rabi al-Awwal — the third month of the Islamic lunar calendar — observed by…
A spectacular event featuring 5,000 musicians took place in the central square of Taldykorgan, in southeastern Kazakhstan, setting a new national record. The large-scale flash mob, titled «The Sound of the Great Steppe,» was organized in celebration of Kazakhstan’s National Day of Dombra, a traditional two-stringed lute central to Kazakh…
The recent installation of Astana’s light rail transit (LRT) trains has drawn widespread attention both online and in person, as residents of Kazakhstan’s capital city unwittingly echoed a scene from a legendary Soviet-era painting by Kazakh artist Abylkhan Kasteyev (1904-1973). The long-awaited LRT trains arrived in Astana and were placed…
A neural network-generated reimagining of the «Harry Potter» saga has surfaced, offering a fresh perspective on what the characters might look like if they were Kazakh. The images have sparked buzz online, with some commenters saying the new cast looks even better than the original movie characters. The project gained…
KeshYOU, a popular musical band from Kazakhstan, released its new clip for the track “Forever Sunday” in collaboration with Snoop Dogg, a living legend of American rap music. In the clip, the girls from KeshYOU sing and dance in various locations in Los Angeles, riding around in a Tesla Cybertruck,…
Yerkinbek Ptyraliyev, a cameraman from Kazakhstan, has become a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, also known as the Oscars. Kursiv LifeStyle congratulates Yerkinbek and displays a screenshot of his invitation letter. «Dear Yerkinbek, congratulations on becoming a member of the Academy! … You will also…
Nikita Yermolayev, the creative director of RA Kombinat, has become the first representative of Kazakhstan on the board of the Cannes Lions 2024 jury. Kursiv LifeStyle discovered how someone can find themselves in that position and how well Kazakhstani creative projects performed at the festival. Yermolayev shared his impression of…
D Billions from Kyrgyzstan is perhaps the most well-known cultural product the country has produced in recent years. Kursiv LifeStyle has decided to explore how a group of artists from Kyrgyzstan found themselves earning hundreds of thousands of dollars per month. D Billions is a band and YouTube channel offering…
