October 5, 2023–January 14, 2024
The opening exhibition of the europalia georgia festival, The Avant-Garde in Georgia (1900–1936), will present, for the very first time in Europe, a largely forgotten chapter in the history of avant-garde art. The Georgian avant-garde will be shown and contextualised through a large body of works (paintings, drawings, films, photographs and decors as well as costumes from films and theatre plays) mainly kept in Georgia.
In the aftermath of the fall of the Russian Empire and the October Revolution, in a turbulent world context, Georgia declared its independence in 1918. This brief, enchanted interlude ended with the Soviet invasion of 1921. Nevertheless, it allowed for an abundant and inspiring avant-garde creation to flourish. Artists developed new artistic practices that redefined a general attitude to life, which took many forms and combined Georgian traditions with Eastern and Western influences. They interacted in paintings, drawings, writing, films, photographs, performances, typographic research, books and plays. Movements as diverse as (neo-)Symbolism, Futurism, Dadaism, Zaum, Everythingism, Expressionism, Cubism and Cubo-Futurism coexisted in an unprecedented creative ferment. The year 1936 and the great purges ordered by Stalin’s regime marked the end of Georgian avant-garde creation, but the ideas persisted down the generations and resurfaced in the 1970s.
With works by, among others, Elene Akhvlediani, Irakli Gamrekeli, Gigo Gabashvili, Nutsa Ghoghoberidze, Lado Gudiashvili, David Kakabadze, Shalva Kikodze, Kote Mikaberidze, Petre Otskheli, Niko Pirosmani, Alexander von Salzmann, Ilia and Kirill Zdanevich.
Also at Bozar, and also in the framework of europalia georgia, contemporary artist Meggy Rustamova Adeishvili will present her new film Deda Ena, which examines her mother’s deportation under Stalin’s regime, during the 1950s, from Tbilisi to Kazakhstan, an echo of the many displacements currently happening in the region and around the world.
A production by europalia.
Curators: Nana Kipiani, Irine Jorjadze and Tea Tabatadze, in collaboration with europalia
Press contacts
Sarah-Claire Vermeulen, sarah-claire@serenai.eu
Laurence Morel de Westgaver, Laurence@nakami.be
Arts festival: October 4, 2023–January 14, 2024
This autumn, europalia dedicates an arts festival to Georgia! The starting point for this edition is the country’s fascinating culture and the art scene of its bustling capital, Tbilisi, alongside that of lesser-known cities and regions. Starting October 4, 2023, visitors can enjoy a rich programme of exhibitions, performances, concerts, film, dance and theatre productions and literature across Belgium. Alongside existing work, the festival programme will feature numerous new, interdisciplinary creations, in collaboration with dozens of artists and partners.
About europalia
Every two years, europalia compiles a diverse artistic programme focusing on a country or a theme. For four months, in Belgium and its neighbouring countries, europalia, in collaboration with a wide network of cultural partners, presents a biennial with a myriad of artistic and socio-cultural projects that bring together visual arts, performing arts, film, music, literature and debate to stimulate an exchange of ideas. Newly commissioned projects and artistic residencies hold a central place in the programme, which engenders a unique interaction between heritage and art.
