Two Tajik artists -- miniature-painter Olim Kamalov and jeweler Dilmurod Sharipov -- are participating in the 3rd International Festival for Arts, Crafts and Creativity that kicked off in Tabriz, Iran on May 3, 2017.  

In all, representatives of nearly 30 countries of the world, including all five Central Asian nations, are participating in this event. 

The Third 2017 International Congress on Crafts and Arts of the Muslim World with a focus on miniature, paper making, book-binding and ebru and the Tabriz International Award for Innovation and Creativity in Crafts - Awards worth US$80.000 are reportedly being held in the framework of the Festival.  

The winners will be announced on May 12.  

The aim of the congress is to raise international awareness of the importance of arts and crafts; to explore the economic role that these products can play; to discuss ways of exploring job opportunities for citizens in this sector; to try to activate innovation dimension in this field; to examine the revenues that this sector can generate when linked with the touristic and economic sector; to examine the current situation of the crafts and the perspectives of their development; to preserve the originality of the traditional crafts; and to introduce the sector and make it known through the available channels.

The themes of the congress reportedly deal with all aspects and means that guarantee the increase of public awareness with a view to creating a generation awareness of the importance of arts, handicrafts and heritage.

The Third Tabriz International Festival of Arts, Crafts and Creativity is jointly organized by the Istanbul-based Research Centre for Islamic History, Art and Culture (IRCICA), Tabriz University for Islamic Arts and Islamic Culture and Relations Organizations of Iran.