Uzbekistan Museum Is Focus of Critically Acclaimed Documentary

MIR Corporation Provides Access to Uzbekistan Museum That Is Focus of Critically Acclaimed Documentary,

"The Desert of Forbidden Art"

SEATTLE, WA. May 17, 2011 ˆ MIR Corporation http://www.mircorp.com/ announces group and private travel options to Uzbekistan that encompass the Savitsky Collection at theKarakalpakstan State Museum of Art, subject of a new documentary, „The Desert of Forbidden Art‰.

This critically acclaimed film has earned accolades from the Los Angeles Times and KCRW's ArtTalk. The New York Times recently published a review and an article about the museum.

Guests can tour a hall that contains hundreds of works painted by artists working in styles that were, in the time of Stalin, considered subversive. Concern for these works prompted an art cognoscente, Igor Savitsky, to bundle thousands of avant-garde paintings and take them far from the epicenter of Soviet power to remote Uzbekistan.  Savitsky also collected artifacts of the steppe, and today the museum is home to one of the largest collections of archeological objects and folk, applied and contemporary art originating in Central Asia.

„MIR Corporation, with insight from „The Desert of Forbidden Art‰ filmmakers, has developed itineraries to bring travelers to this remote museum while exploring the great country of Uzbekistan,‰ said Annie Lucas, vice president of MIR.

Modern travelers on MIR's tours join a storied history of explorers who found the lure of the Silk Route's spices, silks and carpets too strong to resist. Celebrating 25 years of travel to this slice of the globe, MIR is the first American company to have an accredited office in Uzbekistan that is still flourishing today and providing a decided edge in on-the-ground operations in Central Asia. 

There are several exclusive ways MIR can arrange an exploration of this region near the ever-shrinking Aral Sea. Guests can take a private side-trip while in Central Asia on a select MIR small group tour. Or a tour can be arranged as a pre- or post-tour extension for those traveling on MIR‚s Silk Road Odyssey small group tour or Essential Silk Road independent journey.  MIR can also design a custom & private trip that could focus on Uzbekistan only or include some or all of the five independent ŒStans‚ of the former Soviet Union: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan,Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.

"The Desert of Forbidden Art" website schedules upcoming screenings across the U.S. and around the world, and offers a link to purchase a DVD of the movie.

For additional information, itineraries, questions and assistance, please call MIR at 800-424-7289 or visit http://www.mircorp.com/nukus_savitsky_museum.asp.

About MIR Corporation

MIR Corporation, whose name means "peace" and "world" in Russian, has specialized in Russia (and neighboring countries) since 1986. Offering scheduled and custom journeys to Russia, along the Trans-Siberian and across the Silk Route, MIR's Seattle-based experts design imaginative trips that
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