Mikheil Kalatozov (Kalatozishvili)
Mikheil Kalatozov (Kalatozishvili) was a Georgian filmmaker who remains the only filmmaker in Soviet and Post-soviet cinema to have won the Palme D’or –the main prize at the Cannes film festival. He received the award for the war drama The Cranes Are Flying in 1958.
Born in 1903 in Tbilisi, Georgia, Mikheil Kalatozsihvili (later Kalatozov) studied economics before deciding to seek work in cinema. He began his film career at the height of the silent film era, trying out several occupations in the industry: He started as a chauffeur at the Georgian Film Studio, then glued the film rolls together, after which he became an editor, starred in several movies as an actor, worked as a cameraman, a second director, and eventually became an independent filmmaker. His directorial debut was Salt for Svanetia (Jim Svante), filmed in 1930, which became a milestone in both his career and in the history of Georgian and Soviet cinema.
“If we had known that this picture existed back in 1964, maybe cinema would have been different now”- this is how Martin Scorsese reacted to Mikhail Kalatozov’s (Kalatozishvili) I Am Cuba, after discovering it in the mid-1990s. The Hollywood master claimed the film to be a genuine hidden treasure, referring to Kalatozov’s storytelling technique and unique cinematic language, adding that “it puts to shame anything we’re doing today”.
THE FATE OF EROTICISM UNDER A TOTALITARIAN REGIME - Read the article by Kristine Darchia | link in comments
HIDDEN TRACES OF GEORGIAN MODERNISM IN ALEKSANDRE TSIMAKURIDZE’S LANDSCAPE - Read the article by Kristine Darchia | link in comments
Today at 18:00 o’clock
LIA BAGRATIONI’s Paintings, The First Solo Exhibition at ATINATI’S
#Glimpseingallery - "And the Life Goes On..." is the solo show of Georgian artist Gela Zautashvili.
#Glimpseingallery - "And the Life Goes On..." is the solo show of Georgian artist Gela Zautashvili. The exhibition marks the first posthumous display of Gela Zautashvili's work. Here, a significant segment of this exceptional artist's work is showcased - a retrospective of abstract paintings spanning various periods of his life.
"Every man should pass through the door of Picasso, but he must not stay there, he must go further." — André Breton. It is precisely this statement that resonates with Gela Zautashvili's views on art and thoughts on the essence of artistic creativity.
When the art historian by profession burdened with boundless knowledge in the field of art history decided to devote his life to painting, it was hard to shed the enormous burden of information and find himself in art. The themes of Gela Zautashvili are nature, human struggle, the infinity of the world.
He is a painter who perpetually sought to express the essence of phenomena and events, resulting in art that is deep and original. Gela Zautashvili's name is associated with the first exhibitions of abstractionism in Paris and Moscow during the late 1980s, as well as the formation of a group of non-figurative art together with the patriarch-abstractionist Alexander (Shura) Bandzeladze.
The works of Gela Zautashvili are kept in numerous museums and private collections worldwide.
Host of the exhibition: Vanda Art Gallery
SOLIKO VIRSALADZE - A GREAT THEATER ARTIST - Read the article by Ketevan Kintsurashvili | link in comments
“Poison for a Couple” - Keti Kapanadze's solo exhibition.
“Poison for a Couple” is Keti Kapanadze's solo exhibition. The title references the artist's 1990 black-and-white photo depicting a pair of old-fashioned perfume bottles. The show features her early series of works.
The exhibition includes a fascinating collection of black-and-white conceptual photos from the 1990s. Additionally, it features Anima Ex Machina texts and drawings created with black gouache on paper, which were later transitioned to cardboard. The artist employed a technique akin to automatic writing exercises. The drawings resemble technical diagrams and convey a sense of mystery. The artist believes that blackness represents a space where all information is stored, and her indecipherable drawings emerge from this realm. Some of the works included in the exhibition were originally created in the 1980s, but in 2003-04, the artist remade some of them as part of the lost original works. She also introduced several new compositions, expanding the series.
The exhibition will also include Akasha Chronicles painting series (2010), which involves layered canvases with transparent material.
Keti Kapanadze began her artistic career in Tbilisi in the mid-1980s. While such artist groups like the 10th Floor and later Marjanishvili Studio artists were active then, Kapanadze was not part of these groups and was seldom invited to exhibit alongside them. She stands out as one of the pioneering feminist artists in Georgia, delving into her identity through conceptual photography. Kapanadze describes her artistic process as capturing objects without showing herself yet conveying her message through these objects, expressing the depth of her identity and experiences. Keti Kapanadze often exhibits in Germany, where she has been living since 2000 when she received Bauman Stiftung's stipend. She was a visiting professor at Johannes Gutenberg University (Mainz, Germany), and later, supervised the diploma projects at VA[A]DS at the Free University of Tbilisi.
Host of t
ZYGMUNT WALISZEWSKI - AN ARTIST IMPORTANT TO BOTH POLISH AND GEORGIAN ART - Read the article by Ketevan Kintsurashvili | link in comments
#Glimpseingallery - “Children in Georgian Painting”
#Glimpseingallery - “Children in Georgian Painting” is the exhibition dedicated to Children’s Day. It is a retrospective exhibition of paintings and graphic works on the theme of children from the collection of the Shalva Amiranashvili State Museum of Art of Georgia.
Keeping pace with the chronicles of human fine art, the history of Georgian art comprises a unique collection of children’s images, created by both Georgian and foreign artists residing in Georgia. Such as Niko Pirosmani, David Kakabadze, Shalva Kikodze, Vasili Shukhaevi, Mose Toidze, Ketevan Maghalashvili and etc. Most of the works are shown for the first time.
The exhibition commemorating the International Day of Children’s Protection serves as another reminder to society that children are always important symbols of the world, and the elder generation must provide a secure environment for them.
The exhibition organized by the “International Children’s Fund” aims to showcase the evolving public understanding of the unique phenomenon of children and childhood in fine art.
Host of the exhibition: The Sighnaghi Museum of History and Ethnography Georgian National Museum / საქართველოს ეროვნული მუზეუმი
KORNELI SANADZE - A SEEMINGLY SOVIET NON-SOVIET ARTIST - Read the article by Kristine Darchia | link in comments The majority of works featured in the video are part of ATINATI Private Collection
Happy Independence Day Georgia!!!🇬🇪🇪🇺
Happy Independence Day Georgia!!!🇬🇪🇪🇺
#Glimpseingallery - Kako Topuria
#Glimpseingallery - Kako Topuria’s work focuses on unified figurative motifs, which draw attention owing to their positioning. His system of hieroglyphic-lettrist images is created through the application of a single formula of abstraction, which transforms the diversity of the characters in such a way that it is impossible to unravel their specific elements. Thanks to their hieratic figurativeness, conditional facial expressions and undifferentiated appearance, these characters resemble archaic idols. These are modern idols that are completely free of any mystical context. Figures with the appearance of "toys' ' are moving in a conventional environment like puppets, demonstrating ironic and childish emotions and parodied bodies.
They represent the drama of the modern world – the interpretation of which begins with the death of the gods, and is shown through the neglect of personal differentiation and individual qualities, executed with the help of symbolic and allegorical elements.
With colorful frescoes, the palimpsest culture of performance, deformed figurativeness, iconic imagery and the reflection of movement, the artist offers the audience an engaging and original version of the cultural mythology that is precipitated in the vast space of the modern world.
Host of the exhibition: Baia Gallery - ბაია გალერეა
THE REPRESSED GEORGIAN AVANT-GARDE - Read the article by Ketevan Shavgulidze | link in comments
TBILISI ART FAIR
TBILISI ART FAIR - For the fourth time, the Tbilisi Contemporary Art Fair is back.
Already well-known for the art scenes of Europe and Asia, the event was held at the ExpoGeorgia exhibition center. TAF • Tbilisi Art Fair showcases local and international galleries, young and emerging artists’ solo exhibitions, and curated exhibitions. The largest contemporary art fair in the region unites art professionals, curators, critics, collectors, international media, and visitors from all over the world.
TAF serves as a platform for performances, workshops, TAF TALKS, TAF KIDS | SOLO KIDS, TAF | SOLO HOBBY, and other activities that aim to promote the integration between contemporary art scenes.
HENRYK HRYNIEWSKI - Read the article by Eka Kiknadze | link in comments
LADO GUDIASHVILI’S PAINTINGS FROM MODERNIST PERIOD - Read the article by Nino Tchogoshvili | link in comments
Happy Easter!
Happy Easter!
The Church of the Mother of God is located in the village of Metekhi, in Kartli Province.
The Church of the Mother of God is located in the village of Metekhi, in Kartli Province. Legend attributes its foundation to the fifth-century Georgian king Vakhtang Gorgasali. Based on archeological proofs the extant church was built in the first half of the thirteenth century and restored several times in the late Middle Ages and Modern times.
Music by - Abkhaz State Song Ensemble Shavnabada • შავნაბადა - ბინდისფერია სოფელი
FELIX VARLAMISHVILI (aka VARLA) - Read the article by Ketevan Kintsurashvili | link in comments
Glimpse in Gallery - Exhibition by photographer Gia Chkhatarashvili about USHGULI
#Glimpseingallery - Exhibition by photographer Gia Chkhatarashvili is about USHGULI. Caucasus mountain village Ushguli is the highest inhabited village in Europe, dating back two thousand years. The exhibition showed the life of Svanetian people. With the photographs Gia wants to preserve the cultural values he believes should be cherished and remembered.
Gia Chkhatarashvili (1959) is a Georgian self-taught photographer. After graduating from Tbilisi State University with a degree in Philosophy, he discovered photography as a primary job. His career began in 1990 and his works have been exhibited in the United States, Germany, Poland, Norway and Switzerland.
Host of the exhibition: Baia Gallery - ბაია გალერეა
