Georgian Museum of Fine Arts — Local services in Tbilisi

On August 31st I was in this museum for several hours. First the positive aspects. The people who say most of this isn't art have absolutely no idea. I liked many of the pictures and also became emotional because many of the works of art spoke to me. I also liked the modern facilities. What I didn't like: that foreigners have to pay more. This regulation must be abolished because it is clearly discriminatory. I was born in Germany, but my family comes from Georgia. Of course I had to pay more than someone who was born here. Who came up with that? This country is clearly backward developed. There is discrimination against “foreigners”. Come to Germany - you don't have to pay for a ticket anymore. What I didn't like was that there were too many works of art by different artists in a small space. I find minimalist furnishings much more appealing. The little texts about the artists mean little to me: I want to know the deep meaning behind individual works of art. So I have to laboriously look it up on the internet. You could expect more for such an expensive ticket. But of course the museum can't do anything about it, because Georgia (Although this country is rich in culture, history and rurally beautiful) is a country that is unfortunately politically, economically and socially very weak and no one is rebelling against it and standing up for positive things in...

The Georgian Museum of Fine Arts is a relatively new, private museum devoted mostly to modernist painting. (It is not to be confused with the Georgian National Museum’s Museum of Fine Arts, located next door.) It is well worth a visit, although there is little in the way of orientation: if you are interested in working chronologically, take the elevator to the top. The third floor focuses on artists born before the Soviet period; the second continues with those born in the 1920s-50s; and the first floor, possibly the richest, those in the late 1950s-70s, following the death of Stalin. Despite vast generational divides, the specific works on display skew heavily toward the late 20th century to present and feature a good mixture of figuration and abstraction.

Biographies of artists are posted in each room, although none of the paintings have their own didactic texts. Some can be read on more or less on their own terms: art historical references, especially to Parisian modernism; religious subjects; and many, many nudes. There is also the occasional wink and nod, such as Edmond Gabriel Kalandadze’s “Felled Tree” (2002). Particular highlights include Dimitri Eristavi's drawings, Irakli Sutidze’s untitled portraits, and Nikoloz Shengelaia’s dreamy, pastel-like "Girl in White...

The building itself is absolutely beautiful, and the collection is really well presented. The paintings are striking, and despite some critiques I’d read beforehand, I actually thought the curation was thoughtful and engaging, and if I was rating only that I would give it 5 stars. The design of the space adds to the experience, though I have to admit the glass stairwell in the center is a bit intimidating.

Unfortunately, the experience was let down by the staff. Almost all of the custodians I passed were glued to their phones, but what stood out the most was on the top floor (5th floor): two young women who worked there were pacing around and speaking so loudly that they became the loudest people in the museum—louder than children, which was shocking. Their constant loud talking was extremely distracting and really took away from the atmosphere. In all my visits to museums around the world, I’ve never experienced anything quite like that, and it seriously diminished the overall experience.

All in all, I would recommend taking noise cancellation headphones or earplugs with you if you want to truly immerse yourself in the...