“From Perestroika Until Today”
In 1985 Perestroika started officially and it has turned into significant event of the world; media started talking on the end of “Evil Empire”, disappearance of “Iron Curtain”, demolition of Berlin Wall.
New meh, characters, rock-movement with its famous slogan “We are waiting for Changes!” was born. Everyone was looking for changes, especially young generation. However, process of dissolution of the empire was more difficult and painful than expected andforecasted. Series of frustration kicked in, symbolic act of wall demolishment did not mean entering field of freedom, new obstacles were breaking out there.
"Georgia will be the second Switzerland"
From the second half of the 80's, speeches and demonstrations started more and more boldly, where the possible brilliance of Georgia and the Georgian people under the conditions of independence was heard more and more often. "Georgia will be the second Switzerland". This phrase was deeply imprinted in the hearts and minds of the Georgian people.
Obsessed with this idea, they restore the Soviet regime, and in April 1989, the struggle for Georgian state independence began with a bloody conflict. Very soon this was followed by the fundamental destruction of the Soviet Union itself, whose architects were Gorbachev and Shevardnadze.
Georgia took advantage of this event and was one of the first to break away from the Soviet Union and declare independence. It was not an easy task for Georgian society. There were many problems to be solved. The nation had to live in difficult conditions. Civil and neighborhood wars broke out. Georgian people fought for their survival in the cold and darkness. But the great hope that Georgia would become a second Switzerland, would become a desired member of NATO, an integral part of Europe, gave the greatest strength to overcome all the difficulties created by the enemy, at one time Russia's father and breadwinner. The fall of the Berlin Wall became a symbol of the unification of Eastern and Western Europe for the whole world. The danger of the Cold War has disappeared and a new era in human history has begun.
This project is based on the facts and events that Georgian politics and worldview experienced after perestroika. How actively Georgia entered the international arena and equalized to European standards. How accepted and understood are all the problems in which all the leading countries of the world are involved. Both in environmental and humanitarian issues. Democracy and human rights. in the development of education and culture.
“Art Panic”
Can art show tyranny, its nature and consequences? Can art show the panic that follows universal disillusionment and the impossibility of change? The main mood of perestroika was expectation, the expectation was about the destruction of the wall, the opening of borders, travel to other countries, the independence of one's country and the inevitable success. The rock movement celebrated its message with a hit of that period: Our bodies are waiting for changes, our hearts are waiting for changes, we are waiting for changes! The change began in words, sentences, their configuration.
Thoughts that slept under the rhythm of communist mantras appeared. At the time, it was said that the Soviet system was based on magic, it was atheistic, but it aimed to create heaven on earth. "Communists have no other goal than to achieve the happiness of all people living on earth. (Nikita Khrushchev. Program of the Communist Party. 1961.) Of the Perestroika publicist programs, the "Fifth Wheel" (Пятое колесо) was particularly popular - a project of Leningrad Television, which first It was aired on April 11, 1988. This program suddenly gained popularity and a large part of the perestroika society became its audience And in imitation of logical reasoning, a new myth was presented, according to which Lenin took hallucinogenic mushrooms and eventually turned into mushrooms. During the discussion, Kuriokhin spoke about the Mexican expedition, from where he had just arrived, and the texts of Carlos Castaneda were confusing to the audience He listened to the scientific hypothesis in full compliance with the rules of argumentation.
Kuryokhin said that Lenin was a mushroom and a radio wave at that, reasoning that the cut of the armor on which Lenin's famous speech took place matched the structure of the mycelium of the mushroom Amanita, and the word "ninelli" - read backwards "Lenin" - was the French name for a dish made from mushrooms. Excerpt from Sergey Kuryokhin's discussion: - ,, as for radio waves, - a person becomes a mushroom and a radio wave at the same time. do you understand Now I will tell you the main thing, where the case is leading me. I have absolutely convincing proof that the whole October Revolution was brought about by people who had been taking certain types of mushrooms for years. And these mushrooms, in the process of these people using them, completely expelled their personalities, turning people into mushrooms. That is, to put it simply, Lenin was a mushroom. And there was a radio wave mushroom with it, you know? "A few months after this tele-action, the Soviet Union was officially dissolved.
During the period of perestroika, a lot of people thought and talked about the model of tyranny by which the system that was already in a stable mode was managed. In 2017, at the Dutch festival in Amsterdam, the Stanislavsky Electro Theater performance was presented - Dmitri Kurliandsky's opera Octavia. Trepanation" directed by Boris Yukhananov. The libretto was based on Lev Trotsky's writings about Lenin (1924) and the play about the Roman emperor Nero, attributed to Seneca. On the stage is a huge head of Lenin surrounded by the skeletons of centaurs, this giant head with a laurel wreath like the Roman emperors moves on both sides of the Chinese terracotta army soldier Abby too With the presence of goliath and headless figures, - the image of tyranny, cruel and bloody. Where there is power, there is resistance, one is building a wall and the other is planning to destroy it. The governed society had to implement, probably in the same way, - replacing the communist mantra with the perestroika mantra. The Soviet man is happy, - repeated the Soviet mantra, - the perestroika man expects changes, opens the doors, opens the border, destroys the wall, or builds a new wall.
Khatuna Khabuliani, PHD Art Historian
1. Video Work “Chilly Winter Is Expected”
The installation “Chilly Winter Is Expected” is a profound existential metaphor for inevitable isolation and self-limitation, both on a personal and global level. The video symbolizes a process in which a window—a symbol of openness, light, and connection to the outside world—is gradually bricked up, reflecting the gradual closing of opportunities and the erection of both internal and external barriers.
The existential depth of the work lies in its paradox: instead of opening up to the world and overcoming challenges, a person (or an entire society) chooses to strengthen their walls, depriving themselves of chances for change and escape from a difficult situation. This is not only a metaphor for preparing for harsh life challenges but also for internal freezing, where fear of the future blocks paths to growth and progress.
At the same time, the installation contains a prophetic element. Just as the window slowly disappears behind the brick wall, so too might the world in the future face a global trend of isolation. Open spaces—symbols of international cooperation, free movement, and mutual understanding—may gradually turn into closed, restricted systems. Countries will increasingly close themselves off, reinforcing their borders and erecting both physical and symbolic walls. This will lead to a worsening global situation, where isolation becomes the norm and open societies freeze in a state of stagnation.
“Chilly Winter Is Expected” serves as a warning that instead of moving forward and embracing change, we may find ourselves in a world where fear of external threats ultimately locks us behind brick walls, leaving humanity frozen in a state with no possibility for development.
2. Installation “From Perestroika Until Today”
The installation “From Perestroika Until Today” serves as a metaphor for a frozen reality where both society and the state are stuck on the path to progress. The existential depth of this work lies in the feeling of helplessness and the inability to overcome one’s own limitations, both personal and societal.
The door itself, as a symbol of possibility, is connected to the idea that every person strives for progress and a better future. An open door is usually associated with an exit from difficulties, but here it becomes an illusion—behind it is a brick wall, reminding us that the promises and hopes for development after the collapse of the Soviet Union have remained unfulfilled.
The brick wall is not just a physical barrier; it symbolizes invisible boundaries within us: social, political, and existential limitations that prevent us from moving forward. A person who confronts this obstacle finds themselves in a state of constant waiting, where the desire for exit and progress is blocked by an impenetrable wall, condemning them to repeat the same questions about the meaning of existence.
The existential fear in this installation lies in the realization that progress is not only a material process but a spiritual one as well, and its absence is a frozen moment in time, an eternal “today” in which we are stuck.