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Abstract

Stitching Kazakh Identity

This submission takes the form of a short documentary film and will be presented with discussion of its research framing, methodology, and key findings.

In post-Soviet Kazakhstan, ethnic identity remains contested, shaped by decades of colonial assimilation and the recent resurgence of nationalist sentiment. This documentary addresses an underexplored question: how can traditional clothing serve as both a medium of cultural revival and a form of subtle political resistance? The work is especially timely in light of the Ukraine war, which has reignited postcolonial discourse and heightened sensitivities around language, heritage, and identity throughout Central Asia.

The aim of this project was to investigate how young Kazakhstani youth and creatives are reclaiming traditional clothing as a way of expressing identity and agency. The objective was to understand both the aesthetic and socio-political functions of ethnic clothing today. How it acts not only as fashion, but as a visual argument for cultural continuity and pride.

This 7-minute documentary employs a qualitative, interview-based method, combining observational filming with testimonies from four key groups: young Kazakh designers, an art historian, and youth from both Kazakh and non-Kazakh backgrounds. The film was shot across urban and semi-urban locations in Kazakhstan, capturing both garment creation processes and personal reflections of those. It also positions the visual medium as a methodological tool in its own right—offering affective, embodied access to lived experiences of identity formation and cultural practice that may otherwise be overlooked in text-based research.

Preliminary findings suggest a strong link between the revival of ethnic clothing and broader postcolonial identity work. Interviewees viewed cultural attire not merely as cultural artifacts, but as active tools of self-definition. The influence of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was palpable: several participants noted an increased desire to distance themselves from Russian cultural influence, instead embracing Kazakh language, symbols, patterns, and history with renewed urgency.

This documentary concludes that clothing, while often dismissed as decorative or apolitical, can act as a living archive and a quiet declaration of cultural resistance. The findings contribute to scholarship in postcolonial studies, fashion anthropology, and Central Asian identity politics. The project’s central message is that reclaiming what we wear is, in many contexts, inseparable from reclaiming who we are.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1CY2iBUyy8AFkS2lTXeixb3sdmFo1x_WH/view?usp=sharing