Gulnara Kasmalieva and Muratbek Dzhumaliev are artistic duo based in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. They graduated respectively in art academies in Moscow and Saint Petersburg in the late 1980s. They created ArtEast as a space where artists could experiment, learn, show work and interact with international colleagues. Once they were pioneers, but now they have become masters. The Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, Frans Jakob Potoit, specially arrived in Bishkek to present them with the Prince Claus Foundation award for their contribution to the development of modern culture.