The Why Not Gallery is thrilled to present the show 'Delicate Dilemmas' by painter Mariam Akhobadze and sculptor David Natidze.
The visual dialogue developed at the exhibition is held between two artists working in the traditional medium, who are trying to rethink the centuries-old material. Two creative voices emerging from academia successfully find their own, highly unique signature within the established tradition of form and material. The works presented on the exhibition concern with the questions of transforming the hefty and static into malleable and dynamic and the delicate balance between.
The exhibition shows David Natidze's natural stone sculptures. Natidze's art derives from the tradition of modernist sculpture; formalist explorations play a leading role in his work. The artist draws inspiration from natural forms, then abstracts them and transforms into highly refined and delicate sculptures deploying a minimalist gesture. The resulting works find a delicate middleground between the abstract and the figurative, leaving room for plenty of interpretations. The artist has a special sensitivity towards the material through which he creates simple but highly elegant forms. He processes the stone to obtain a smooth silk-like surfaces, and in this way, he manages to give the material, natural stone, a delicate and elegant airiness. Natidze's biomorphic forms, sophistication found in simplicity, on the mystical and philosophical, on the fragility of life and this inexplicable balance that holds the universe together.
Young painter Mariam Ahobadze's new figurative series revolves around gymnasts. Androgynous figures are depicted in motion, at different stages of training. Immersed in timelessness and weightlessness, the figures seem to be so focused on maintaining balance that they don't notice each other at all; immersed in themselves, they are wrapped in collective solitude. Familiar gymnastic tricks and people frozen in different poses, remind of studies for the human figure; the artist is deeply invested in the technical side of painting and demonstrates an excellent knowledge of academic painting. However, unintentionally, the paintings turn into psychological portraits and metaphors of the life experiences and delicate dilemmas that define us as a person.
David Natidze (b. 1969) is a Belgium-based sculptor. He graduated from the Tbilisi State Academy of the Fine Arts in 1994, the Faculty of Sculpture and continued his education at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp. The source of inspiration for Natidze's works often derives from natural forms, which the artist abstracts and transforms pieces of natural stone into highly refined and delicate sculptures.
His works are actively exhibited both in Georgia and Europe. He also takes on restoration projects and has restored many important monuments around Europe. Since 2008 he has been teaching at Atelier Schildershof in Schilde, Belgium.
Mariam Akhobadze (b. 1990) is a young painter from Tbilisi. She graduated from the Faculty of Restoration of the Tbilisi State Academy of the Fine Arts, then received a master's degree in Fine Arts (2007-2015). Mariam works mainly in figurative painting and with a hand well trained in academic painting, she creates fascinating psychological portraits. Mariam's paintings often depict her surroundings - friends, relatives, studio interior, but the unusual compositional solutions give a special intensity to her works. Mariam's artwork has been exhibited in Georgia, including her solo exhibition 'Ordinary Life' at the Tbilisi History Museum, Georgian National Museum (2021) and group exhibitions abroad, including Poland, Israel, Italy and Armenia.
Exhibition opening: July 8, 6-8pm
Address: 150 David Agmashenebeli avenue
Exhibition runs till July 9
