Illusions Museum Opens in Tbilisi

Get ready to check out a space where you can laugh, scream, take pictures and do many other things that are usually forbidden in museums.

The Illusions Museum officially opened at 10 Bethlehem Street in March and offers numerous interesting visual and intellectual experiences. The Museum combines perspectives, optical and other types of illusion, and a “play room” where visitors can try out a number of didactic games and really get stuck into the new experiences to be had here.

“The first Illusions Museum opened in Zagreb, the capital of Croatia, in 2015. This was soon followed by openings in the Zadar Museum, Ljubljana, Vienna, Muscat, Belgrade, Kuala Lumpur, New York, Toronto, Berlin, Athens, Dubai, Hamburg, Kansas, and now Tbilisi. This is a completely different place where people can laugh, scream, take pictures and do many other things that are usually forbidden in museums,” says Rocco Zhivkovich, the author of the idea.

The idea of opening the Georgian Museum belongs to the Sarke Group. As a result of their initiative, museum visitors have the opportunity to learn about human vision, perception and science through static and interactive installations and find out why their eyes see what they cannot perceive. The concept of the Illusion Museum is radically different from the classical understanding of the word "museum" and it offers a unique new space that is designed for entertaining cognition. The Illusion Museum is a place where all the optical, physiological and cognitive illusions are presented together. The Illusion Museum’s illusion collection should simultaneously encourage an observer, surprise and make them think about their own feelings.

Visitors have an opportunity to find out about human vision, perception and science through attractive and entertaining installations. “The museum also has a gaming room and a souvenir shop where visitors of all ages can play, compete, learn something new and buy original gifts such as fun wooden didactic toys and puzzles that develop and stimulate creativity,” notes Natalia Ananiashvili, Head of Marketing of Illusions Museum.

The museum collection consists of more than 70 exhibits based on knowledge of science, mathematics, biology and psychology. You can find information and explanations next to the exhibits. The narrative language will be Georgian, English and Russian. The technical support for the museum in Tbilisi, as in other countries, comes from their Croatian counterparts.

As Ananiashvili notes, the museum is intended for all generations. In addition, the museum will have the facilities to host birthday parties for 5-15-year-olds, with a program including a tour of the museum, didactic games and puzzles. Corporate events, meetings and presentations will also be possible.

“The Tbilisi Illusions Museum is part of a global project on the Georgian market. The concept of the museum itself is unchanged from country to country. The only difference is in the format size. In relatively small museums, there is naturally not enough space for every room or attraction. The Tbilisi museum format is 150-400 m2, however, and so offers visitors the complete collection of Illusion Museum exhibits.”

Why is this type of museum opening in Tbilisi? The authors of the idea say that it was the lack of such places in modern Georgian reality where people could enjoy free time in a nice and different way that inspired them most.

By Mariam Merabishvili