Christmas Fairy Tale at Vanda Gallery
Several days ago, the dreamlike solo exhibition of the Georgian female painter Nino Peradze was opened at Vanda Gallery under the title ‘Angels in Town’. For those who love Christmas and New Year and believe that something new and beautiful awaits them in these magical weeks, and also for those wishing to raise their spirit for the forthcoming parties, this exhibition was a real Christmas treat!
Azure-blue clarity, so appropriate to the transparency of Christmas Day, is continued by the mysteriousness of velvet-lilac tints and flamboyance, hope and courage of red, which is the color of the rooster, symbolizing the astrological master of the forthcoming year.
It is said the painter always has some surprises for her visitors and this time it was a display of multicolored jewel-cases and Christmas tree decorations. Visitors can stroll through the imaginary world of the towns of Europe that Nino Peradze has visited, represented as the reflection of reminiscences in her own abstract way… Baltic cities, Spain, the Netherlands, and more… They are the fruits of her ceaseless traveling experience later transformed into creative inspirations. In this dream world, angels rest on the rooftops of the houses in different corners of the world, thus indicating that the bliss of Christmas will be spread all around the globe for everyone’s happiness. Some angels are driving bicycles, too – the climax of phantasmagoria at this exhibition.
“This is already Nino’s fifth solo exhibition at our gallery,” Vanda Mujiri, founder of the gallery, told GEORGIA TODAY. “This is her third exhibition on the Christmas theme alone. She is a very creative, cheerful and positive person.”
And she is clearly fond of the Christmas theme- her respective exhibitions are always wonderful.
“It’s in our interest to give her a room in our gallery that somehow guarantees a joyful mood,” Mujiri says. “Besides being a painter, Nino is also an illustrator and cartoon artist, so she is very multifaceted.”
Nino Peradze represents the generation of Georgian painters who emerged in the 1980s, and is considered to be one of the most interesting graphic artists- she often leaves Georgia to work in various ateliers in the west: she is one of the pioneers of silk screen in Georgia, always distinguished by her individual signature, thus managing to be popular among all generations.
“In my opinion, every person who is more or less talented passes through a period of influences,” the painter tells us. “By the age of 40, all these impressions are gone and filtered by one’s own self and taste. It was like that in my case. You become much more honest and do what you want you become free. I do not fear the critics, though I read them by all means, and take note of the good remarks.”
She is considered to be full of romantic vision, aestheticism, high professional skills and taste. Even her surname (“peri” in Georgian) stands for color, justifying her colorful world. Apart from being so romantic in her vision and colors, paradoxically enough, Nino Peradze acknowledges herself as a very realistic person. “I do not share the opinion that art should be a mirror of reality. When I look back to the 1990s, my paintings were so dark that I fear them now. If we cannot change the reality, we can at least change our disposition. It is necessary to wear rose-tinted glasses sometimes, and if we did, we wouldn’t be so aggressive.” The painter confides that she is fond of life and if one well realizes that we only live once, she/he will probably try her/his best to grasp the best moments.
Some part of this memorable, idealistic exposition that lets us forget about harsh reality and find oblivion in romantic colors and shapes will stay at the premises of the gallery and the guests will have a chance to see them even after the exhibition on the ground floor of the gallery.
Nino Peradze promises the audience many more picturesque exhibitions, including one specifically dedicated to her traveling series.
WHERE: Chonkadze Str. 14
WHEN: Until Dec 19, from 12pm to 7pm
Maka Lomadze