New museum in Georgia uses technology to bring art to life

Video. New museum in Georgia uses technology to bring art to life

A museum has opened in Tbilisi with an exhibition of Niko Pirosmani's art.

A museum has opened in Tbilisi with an exhibition of Niko Pirosmani's art.

But they have added a modern twist - projectors have been used to make the work shift and move in front of visitors' eyes.

Niko Pirosmani painted "The Fisherman" in the early 20th century - but now it's getting a 21st-century makeover.

Georgia's most renowned artist has been given a modern twist with the help of technology.

At the new Museum of Holograms, called Holoseum, in Tbilisi, 120 projectors splash his art onto the walls, the characters turning, twisting and moving as visitors watch.

For the director of the project, Levan Bakhia, Pirosmani was an obvious choice to bring to digital life.

"If you ask 100 Georgians to name the Georgian artist, the first name will be Pirosmani. I would answer the same," he says.

This is the first exhibition to be held at the museum.

Visitors can immerse themselves in Pirosmani's art, interacting it with it to see how the installations shift with their movement and stepping into a kaleidoscope of the work.

Self-taught Pirosmani's style is often described as "naive" or "neo primitivist" - an aesthetic that is simple and unsophisticated, and typically produced by artists who have not been formally trained.

He worked in many jobs, including as a herdsman, a railway conductor and painting signs for businesses.

Pirosmani never achieved great commercial success during his own lifetime and died in relative obscurity.

But his work influenced the art world - indeed, Pablo Picasso painted his portrait.

This is the first exhibition of four expected to be held at the museum this year.

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