Artisterium exhibition brings global artists to Tbilisi

For the next 10 days Georgia's capital Tbilisi will turn into a global hotspot for contemporary art, bringing together dozens of artists from all over the world.

From November 4-14, six venues in the city will host the 9th Tbilisi Annual International Contemporary Art Exhibition and Art Event, commonly known as Artisterium, and present the world of some of the world's most creative contemporary artists.

The exhibition, due to open tomorrow at the Tbilisi History Museum (also known as Karvasla), will feature the work of over 50 local and foreign artists under the theme of critical examination of tradition, authority and people's relations to them.

Georgian artist Nona Didebashvili's 2016 work 'Over Thinking'. Photo from Artisterium.

We seek to unearth some of the essential processes within the eternal conflict between tradition and modernity – via the very serious technique of play," said organisers of this year's exhibition.

As well as Karvasla, events of this year's exhibition will be hosted at the Simon Janashia Museum of Georgia, Giorgi Leonidze State Museum of Georgian Literature, Container Gallery, Gala Gallery and ArtArea Exhibition Hall.

These venues will present works by artists from 15 countries such as South Korea, Portugal, Switzerland and the United States.

A still from the 2015 performance 'The Net' by South Korean artist Yoo La Shin. Photo from Artisterium.

As well as individual projects and group displays, Artisterium will host a range of educational and cultural events over the next 10 days. The annual occasion is organised by the Georgia-based Artisterium Association.

Both the association and the exhibition event take its name from an early 20th Century Tbilisi art club known for its novel exhibitions, poetry evenings and talks.

The 2011 installation 'Contact' by Georgian artist Nata Pirtskhalava. Photo from Artisterium.

Since its founding in 2008, the Artisterium exhibition has hosted hundreds of artists and their contemporary displays.

In last year's exhibition, nearly 100 artists were asked to respond creatively to the popular social media question "What’s on your mind?” by presenting works exploring their thoughts on "timelines" of exhibition locations.