TBC Ornaments Case (RU)

Globalization and digitalization are driving development and erasing borders between countries, but they also blend cultures and threaten the loss of national identity. In Uzbekistan, this has made people feel that everything is foreign, yet the new generation now seeks self‑identification. Young Uzbeks take pride in their nation and wish to revive their cultural heritage. A key element of cultural identity—graphics, design, and visual language—has long been lost or altered, leading to confusion and misuse. The first digital bank with Georgian roots decided to digitize Uzbekistan’s visual heritage by compiling traditional ornaments into a publicly accessible database, preserving their originality, categorizing them, and documenting their history, meanings, and uses. The project team embarked on a series of expeditions across Uzbek cities, visiting national museums, cultural centers, and applied‑arts workshops, engaging with craftsmen who pass on their skills from generation to generation, and documenting all materials. As a result, more than 300 ornaments were digitized, and 100 were uploaded to an open catalog with descriptions by an art historian.