ART: Art Villa Garikula / არტ ვილა გარიყულა - Metamorph - Bolgarsky Palace in Venice

Story that has spanned more than a century: from Bolgarsky summer residence in Akhalkalaki village to the first regional Center for Contemporary Art in Georgia. Garikula – Center of the Arts project of the newly established art center presented Georgia first time in Venice at the 9th International Architecture Exhibition in 2004. Bolgarsky summer residence was built in 1885 by Tbilisi born civil engineer of Polish descent, Vasili Boglarsky for his beloved wife. Apart from this house, he constructed several public buildings in Tbilisi including Military Cathedral in the centre of town (which does not exist anymore) and engineered a new water system for the famous Motley Baths in the Old City.

The summer residence was equipped with heating system and plumbing and boasted with wonderful wine cellar, as well as Champaign production and canning. The delicious output of Bolgarsky estate, could have been bought not only in the Russian Empire’s parent state but in Paris as well. After the establishment of the Soviet Rule, with the beginning of Red Terror Bolgarski was declared people’s enemy and subsequently executed. Estate was plundered. A boarding school was opened in the Bolgarky residence, but to everyone’s dismay, later closed, abandoned and used as a hay barn in a village.

Art villa started in late 90s of the last century as an artists’ squat based in Bolgarsky Palace, a derelict and desolate building which was cleaned and put in order with the help of artists, architects and students from Tbilisi State Academy of Arts led by the educator and painter Karaman Kutateladze. The process of rehabilitation was carried out in accordance with the new functions of the cultural heritage. Later, its result was turned into architectural project Garikula - Center of Arts. The latter presented Georgia first time at the Venice Biennial of Architecture in 2004 titled METAMORPH. The project showcased the metamorphosis of the Bolgarsky Palace from the abandoned heritage into its new future as the Centre for Contemporary Art.

Links:
www.garikula.com/
www.facebook.com/ArtVillaGarikul
Renovation to restore iconic look of popular Art Villa Garikula [agenda_ge]
Art Village [tabula.ge]
Art Villa Garikula steht am Rande der Ortschaft Akhalkalaki [schweizermonat.ch]

FESTIVAL: Fest i Nova International Festival Of Contemporary Art Garikula'09, Akhalkalaki, Georgia (garikula.org)

Fest i Nova will host artists from Austria, France, Georgia, Netherlands, United States of America.

The "Foundation of Revival and Development of Cultural Heritage of Shida Kartli / Georgia" will launch this year a new Festival of Contemporary Art in the Art Villa Garikula / Ahkalkalaki (5th of August - 25th of October '09). The Chairman of the Foundation - Karaman Kutateladze - will host artists from Austria, Georgia, France, Netherlands and the United States of America. The artists are invited to realize individual projects in the frame of the given context "pavilion". The goal of each project is to create a specific platform in order to faciliate the exchange of artistic views as well as to stimulate different practises of contemporary art.
The first part of the International Art Festival "FEST I NOVA - Garikula '09" will start on August the 5th with the Austrian project "ici GARIKULA", followed by American, Dutch, French and Georgian presentations.
An exhibition - dedicated to Kirill and Ilia (ILIAZD) Zdanevitch - will take place at the National Museum of Georgia, in collaboration with the French Embassy in Georgia, the Centre Alexandre Dumas and ART VILLA GARIKULA.

Participants:
AUSTRIA / Simonetta Ferfoglia & Heinrich Pichler (gangart), Gilbert Bretterbauer, Tina Bepperling, Isabel Becker and art critic Carola Platzek.
FRANCE / Jean Dupuy, Emile Laugier, Aurele "Lost Dog" and Elisa Fantozzi
GEORGIA / Oleg Timchenko, Guga Kotetishvili, Vakhtang Bughadze, Karaman Kutateladze, Givi Nonikashvili, Nino Morbedadze, Rezo Gogolashvili, Gogi Okropiridze, Vakhtang Tsereteli, Koka Ramishvili and Mamuka Japaridze
NETHERLANDS / Anouk Sluizer, Jeanette Groenedaal and Zoot Derks
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA /
Nanuka Tchitchoua, Travis Wade Ivy, Eva Salina Primack, Aurelia Shrenker Fest i Nova's new guest: HUMAN EMOTION PROJECT Human Emotions documented visually by international artists using film or video.
By employing the largest palette of creative possibilities, film and video artists from around the world strive to externalize those complex driving forces that we all enjoy and endure and that bind us, as humanity, together despite our differences.

Participants:
Joas Sebastian Nebe "Losing control" Germany (00:57)
Behjat Omar "Bird" Kurdistan/UK (01:14)
Bijan Moosavi "Urban ride" Iran (05:50)
Robertina Sebjanic & Nika Autor"Niro" Slovenia (02:16)
Danny Germansen "Isolation and loneliness" USA (01:59)
Alison Williams (with Lisa Walker) "White as snow" RSA (02:07)
Agricola de Cologne "Silent cry" Germany (03:05)
Lemeh42 "Et dukkehjem" (Faticart Group - Italy) (02:19)
Luca Curci & Fabiana Roscioli "Impossible love" Italy (06:07 )
Anders Weberg "Undisclosed beauty" Sweden (03:13)
Masha Yozefpolsky "Error lips" Israel (03:34)
Irina Gabiani "The slaves of the system" Luxembourg (02:29)
Bill Millett "The book" UK (06:46)
Debbie Douez "Sadness" Spain (02:18)
Richard Jochum "Mama" USA (01:34)
Alberto Guerreiro "Absent" Portugal (03:30)
Michael Chang "Concerto azzurro" Denmark (06:10)
Maryam Fakhimi "Untitled (In the name of God)" Iran (09:20)
Mads Lungdahl "The source" Denmark
Michal Brzezinski "Mnemosyne" Poland (14 min..)
Karina Smigla Bobinski "Routen" Germany

Director: Karaman Kutateladze / GE

Curators and coordinators of projects:
Tina Bepperling / Isabel Becker / Gogi Okropiridze / Guela Tsouladze / Ketevan Kvinikadze / Ketevan Okropiridze / Maya Simonia / Nanouka Tchitchoua / Alison Williams/ Irina Gabiani

Managers:
Revaz Gogolashvii / Khatuna Mzarelua

Collaborators:
Revaz Apkhazava

Partners & Sponsors:
Ministry of Culture, Monuments Protection and Sport of Georgia
Federal Ministry for European and International Affaires of Austria
Federal Ministry for Education, Culture and Sport of Austria
AIRZENA
French Embassy in Georgia
Centre Culturel Francais Alexandre Dumas
CGCCA Centre for Global Coordination of Culture and Art
PCN Platform for Cultural Networking
Kulturschmiede

Link: www.garikula.org

NEWS:

9 Aug 07 Caucasus Reporting Service 405

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Most ethnic Armenians going on to higher education end up studying in other countries. By Maia Ivelashvili in Akhalkalaki and Gayane Mkrtchian in Yerevan (CRS No. 405 09-Aug-07)