A unique exhibition of paintings by the famous Georgian artist Niko Pirosmani has opened in the Museum of the Beyeler Foundation in Switzerland

This event was made possible thanks to the support of the Ministry of Culture of Georgia and will continue until January 28, 2024. It is important to note that the exposition was previously exhibited at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art in Denmark, where it was visited by more than 260 thousand people!

The exhibition in the Swiss Museum presents 46 works by Pirosmani. One of them is from the Niko Pirosmani State Museum in the village of Mirzaani, and the rest are provided by the Sh. Amiranashvili State Museum of Art from its collection. The curator of the exhibition is Samuel Keller, director of the Zurich Kunsthalle Museum.

In addition to the artist's works, special attention is paid to the so-called "Pirosmani room". Here visitors will be able to learn about the artist's life and the history of Tbilisi at that time. The exhibition uses photographs of the D. Ermakov Foundation, the National Museum, various publications in newspapers and magazines of that time. Thanks to this interactive room, guests will be able to immerse themselves more deeply in the atmosphere of Pirosmani's creativity.

The idea of holding an exhibition of Pirosmani's works in Switzerland was born at the beginning of last summer during a visit by the Minister of Culture of Georgia Thea Tsulukiani and the first Deputy director of the National Museum of Georgia Nika Akhalbedashvili to Basel, where a meeting was held with the head of the Museum of the Beyeler Foundation. It is interesting to note that the Swiss and Danish museums mentioned earlier are jointly developing a Georgian-English website dedicated to Niko Pirosmani, his life and creative path. In addition, it is important to note that "Louisiana" has already released a catalog based on the results of its exhibition, and the Swiss plans to release an almanac of Pirosmani's works in the near future.

In order to preserve the paintings before being shipped from Georgia, they were packed according to international museum standards and sent to the Louisiana Museum in Denmark, and then to the Swiss Museum of the Beyeler Foundation. Upon arrival in Switzerland, the works were checked by restorers Nana Managadze and Markus Gross. After the exhibition ends in February 2024, Niko Pirosmani's works will return to his native Georgia.