Following last year’s VIENNAFAIR The New Contemporary kick-off with a curated section of the VIENNA Quintet program in which Georgia played an important role and many artists came to Vienna, we promised to visit Tibilisi. By the end of May everything was set up for the visit!

Marine Mizandari, power woman in furthering contemporary Georgian art.

After a long layover flight and arrival at 5:00 am at the hotel, I was happy to look out of the hotel window and find a beautiful green landscape surrounding Tbilisi.

Nana, art historian and advisor to the Georgian Pavilion this year, invited me for tea and fresh strawberries at her apartment, which contains a fascinating collection of her husband’s work.

Women definitely rule the Georgian art scene. Dedika filled me in on the history of her gallery and local collector habits. End of May she organized exhibitions at the former Museum of Medicine, where she invited me along for a visit.

Kote is a widely traveled scholar who raised his voice loudly in support of gay rights. We had a cup of tea and read some poetry…

On the next day, Sophia showed me around her GeoAir office and library, which she established over the years about the region. In 2007 she presented at the Georgian pavilion in Venice. Sophia talked me through her recent projects, largely inspired by the wild architecture and construction mushrooming in the city.

Irena invited me over to see part of her collection and explore new artists. She took me around the city to some treasures.

Entering Guga’s home, a similar experience as in many houses before. I saw three levels from outside but was amazed to walk through six. Guga designed most of the cafés and restaurants filled by the art crowd in the city.

Guga showed me around his collection of hand-painted film posters from the 80s, interpretations of the original American version.

Located in the heart of the city, the National Gallery showcased an outstanding exhibition of David Kakabadze.

I was happy to meet the artists group Bouillon just a couple of hours before their departure to Venice!

Xatuna, another example of strong women in the city, introduced me to her artist list.

The headquarters of the Bank of Georgia is an 18-story building on the outskirts of Georgia’s capital city Tbilisi. It opened in 1975 as the Ministry of Highway Construction of the Georgian SSR. After Georgia’s independence, the building was left temporarily unused before being acquired by the Bank of Georgia in 2007, which carried out extensive renovation work on the exterior and interior of the building.

A typical Georgian dinner with Niño and Nato at another restaurant designed by Goga. Borjomi is the perfect medicine for all sorts of problems.

At the Venice Biennale I finally got to see the performance by Bouillon.

They perform seven times a week till complete exhaustion. You’ve got to love them!