This thesis paper documents artistic research using a blend of studio-based and scholarly approaches, delving into the history and cultural practices of Azerbaijani people, and the evolution of Azerbaijani culture amidst the backdrop of conquest by the Russian Empire and subsequent influences of the Soviet Union. Combining theories from Homi K. Bhabha with research creation, autoethnographic and decolonizing methodologies, it investigates how culture is affected by imperialism and political powers, and what happens to identity as a result. As an immigrant who lived in the Soviet and Post-Soviet times, and who has now spent over two
decades in the West, I explore notions of cultural hybridity and the fragmentation of diasporic experience. This project is aimed at reconciling my multifaceted identity and finding ways enhance a sense of belonging by reconnecting with ancestral knowledges through artmaking.