National Gallery of Georgia (The Blue Gallery)

Why is it significant?

Arrive before the elegant neoclassical facade of the National Gallery of Georgia, affectionately known throughout the city as the Blue Gallery, or Golubaya Galereya.

Key Facts

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Arrive before the elegant neoclassical facade of the National Gallery of Georgia, affectionately known throughout the city as the Blue Gallery, or Golubaya Galereya. Constructed in 1888 by imperial architect Albert Salzmann as the Military History Museum of the Caucasus, the building was inspired by the celebrated exhibition palaces of Munich and Vienna. In 1920, celebrated Georgian art historian Dimitri Shevardnadze transformed the grand halls into the nation's premier fine arts gallery, creating a permanent sanctuary for Georgian visual art.

Look up at the delicate Italianate pediments, arched portico, and refined blue-grey exterior detailing that gives the gallery its popular name. Inside, the skylit central exhibition halls house the world's supreme collection of paintings by Niko Pirosmani, the self-taught genius of Georgian primitivist art. Marvel at Pirosmani's luminous oil paintings executed on black oilcloth, including The Fisherman in the Red Shirt, The Feast of the Five Princes, and the legendary portrait of Actress Margarita.

Pirosmani lived a life of destitute poverty, painting tavern signs and rural feast scenes in exchange for meals and lodging in the damp basements of Old Tiflis. His extraordinary talent was discovered in 1912 by visiting Russian avant-garde artists Mikhail Larionov and Ilya Zdanevich, who introduced his works to European modernists including Pablo Picasso. Tragically, Pirosmani died unnoticed in a lonely basement during the harsh spring of 1918, his genius recognized globally only decades after his passing.

Standing before Pirosmani's works, one is mesmerized by the profound emotional directness, luminous dignity, and pure poetic soul that radiate from the canvas. The museum also showcases breathtaking masterworks by twentieth-century giants David Kakabadze, Lado Gudiashvili, and sculptor Iakob Nikoladze. The Blue Gallery stands as the luminous artistic heart of Georgia, inspiring creativity in every visitor who steps through its doors.

Continue north along Rustaveli Avenue to arrive before the majestic facade of the Rustaveli National Theater.