Paris in the 1920s: Nikoladze, Kakabadze, and Gudiashvili on display in Georgia

In addition to 130 artworks of Georgian artist Niko Pirosmani (1862-1918) the Dimitri Shevardnadze National Gallery (The National Gallery) in Tbilisi holds the works of three 20th century artists: sculpture Iakob Nikoladze (1876-1951), painter David Kakabadze (1889-1952), and painter Lado Gudiashvili (1896-1980). Nikoladze, Kakabadze and Gudiashvili are on display in the enormously large hall. It is interesting to note that all three artists lived in Paris in the 1920s - it was the place to be (and so thought American writers, such as Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald).

Iakob Nikoladze, from Kutaisi in Georgia, studied in Paris and worked as an assistant to Parisian sculptor Auguste Rodin – famous for sculptures such as The Thinker (created between 1879-1889) and The Kiss (1889). Nikoladze turned down the offer to accompany Rodin to America and instead returned to Tbilisi in 1910. He intended to emigrate to Paris in 1921, but was persuaded to remain in Georgia. The works of Iakob Nikoladze include Girl from the North (1906-07), made of white marble (54x66x45) and Kiss (no date), made from stone (57x51x34) – influenced by Rodin’s work.

David Kakabadze studied natural sciences at the St. Petersburg University and graduated in 1916, but worked as a painter in Tbilisi before living in Paris from 1919 to 1927. He is most noted for his patchworked depiction of agricultural fields and landscapes, mainly from the Imereti region of Georgia, which he painted before and after his Paris period. In the artwork, Imereti – My Mother (1918), oil on canvas (137x153), he has retained the landscape style as a background (upper right hand side), while focusing the detail on his mother.

Lado (Vladimer) Gudiashvili was born in Tbilisi, Georgia, but also lived in Paris from 1919 to 1926 with Kakabadze. He was greatly influenced by the work of Niko Pirosmani. The work of Gudiashvili includes Three Citizens (1920), oil on canvas (81x60) – top photo – and Toast at Dawn (1920), oil on canvas (99x80).

www.museum.ge

MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of:- The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).

Comments

2016 update on Rike Park, Tbilisi: from construction to busy park

From a flat patch of uninteresting dirt, Rike Park in Tbilisi, Georgia, has transformed in four years (from 2014-2016) into a busy park full of trees, flower beds, sculptures, fountains, and events. Rike (Rikhe) Park is on the left bank of the Mt’k’vari River (the Kura River) near the Old City of Tbilisi. The Peace Bridge links the right bank to Rike Park. Rike Park is below the hillside Presidential Palace and, via cable car, it is the starting point for the ride to Sololaki Ridge (with the Narikala Fortress and the Mother of Georgia statue). The glass box-shaped cable car terminus was opened on 23 June 2012, and since then the park has continually developed into a ‘people’s park’ where people can walk around, eat at the nearby restaurants, sit next to the statue of American president Ronald Reagan, climb the steps to Avlabari district, and access the sights of Meidan Square, the Peace Bridge, the Metekhi Church, the Old City, the waterfall, the sulphur baths, and t...

The acacia thorn trees of Kenya

There are nearly 800 species of acacia trees in the world, and most don’t have thorns. The famous "whistling thorn tree" and the Umbrella Thorn tree of Kenya are species of acacia that do have thorns, or spines. Giraffes and other herbivores normally eat thorny acacia foliage, but leave the whistling thorn alone. Usually spines are no deterrent to giraffes. Their long tongues are adapted to strip the leaves from the branches despite the thorns. The thorny acacia like dry and hot conditions. The thorns typically occur in pairs and are 5-8 centimetres (2-3 inches) long. Spines can be straight or curved depending on the species. MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of:- Similar But Different in the Animal Kingdom (2017), The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Suda...

Hop on hop off bus tourism comes to Tbilisi, Georgia

City Sightseeing buses have arrived in Tbilisi. The iconic red double-decker buses, a feature of many cities around the world since the company was established in Seville, Spain in 1999, is now in six continents and almost 100 cities. The company established its Tbilisi business in November 2013, with its operations commencing in February 2014. The 90-minute tour stops at 11 major locations in Tbilisi (with 2 to 5 minute waiting times at each location): the Old City (where it commences), Freedom Square, Rose Revolution Square, Marjanishvili Square, the Dry Bridge, Konka, Avlabari, Metekhi, Akhundov Museum, the Sulfur Baths, and European Square. Passengers can hop off at any stop and see the sights, hopping back onto the next bus at any time. Alternatively, passengers can remain on the bus for the whole tour and take photographs when the bus stops at each location. There are one day (24-hour) passes (for 35 lari – about $20) and 48-hour passes for 55 lari, with family d...

FEAST OR FAMINE

Search This Blog