Assolyaa: carpet portraits
Kazakh artist Assel Sabyrzhankyzy paints portraits directly onto patterned carpets, and films the whole journey from ornament to finished face.
What it is
Assolyaa is the TikTok of Kazakh artist Assel Sabyrzhankyzy. Her project is called Kilem Art — kilem means carpet — and she paints directly onto carpets, leaving part of the traditional ornament visible so the face seems to rise out of the pattern. The account is verified by TikTok, has more than 460,000 followers, and the captions are in Russian.
According to the Kazakh business outlet Kursiv, she was the only creator from Kazakhstan on TikTok's Discover List 2026, in the Innovators category.
Why we picked it
Across Central Asia the carpet is one of the most familiar objects in a home — plenty of people grew up with one hanging on the wall. Assel turns it into a canvas and makes an everyday object into an art piece. This is not a digital filter: you can see the paint going onto the pile and the way she works with the carpet's design rather than covering it up.
The videos are small stories: the portrait taking shape, and often a final shot of the handover, when the person she painted receives the work. In autumn 2026 the feed includes a portrait of tennis player Elena Rybakina titled "Number One", a Cristiano Ronaldo piece made as a gift for the brand Dreame, paintings for Enrique Iglesias and Nicole Scherzinger, and an earlier gift to Jackie Chan.
What we like is the meeting of two worlds: a face from global pop culture and Kazakh ornament that stays part of the picture. The result is not a photo copied onto an odd surface but a new object you could hang on a wall, just as carpets used to hang.
To be upfront: many videos involve celebrities, and one piece is a brand collaboration. But the craft stays at the centre, and it is a technique we have not seen anywhere else.
Where to start
- The Elena Rybakina "Number One" portrait from September 2026 — a clear look at how the ornament becomes both background and frame.
- The "painting Ronaldo on a carpet" video, focused on the process.
- The two-part story of the painting for Enrique, to see how a piece evolves.
- Scroll further back to earlier works to see the technique develop.
Who it's for
Anyone who loves portraiture and watching a picture appear from nothing. People curious about Kazakh culture and how traditional objects get a second life. Makers in the decorative arts — her approach to the texture of the pile and to painting over an existing pattern may spark ideas for other materials.
Quick answers
What language are the videos in? Captions are in Russian, but the videos are painting process and need no translation.
Is it painted or AI-made? The videos show the artist painting on the carpet by hand.
How often does she post? Several videos a month as of September 2026.
