The Art Museum of Georgia (AMG) ( ka, საქართველოს ხელოვნების მუზეუმი, ''sak'art'velos khelovnebis muzeumi''), alternatively known as Shalva Amiranashvili Museum of Fine Arts, is one of the leading museums in the country of Georgia. Falling under the umbrella of the Georgian National Museum, AMG is located near Freedom Square, Tbilisi and possesses around 140,000 items of Georgian, Oriental, Russian, and other European art.

History

A predecessor of the present-day museum, the National Art Gallery, was opened through the efforts of Western-educated young Georgian artists in

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the Capital city, capital and the List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia (country), Georgia, lying on the ...

(Tiflis) on February 1, 1920. Out of it grew the Central Museum of Fine Arts, which was opened in Tbilisi in August 1923. Additional material came from various smaller collections. At the end of 1932, the museum was relocated in the center of the old city on the site of the 13th-century Metekhi church. The Procuress by Lucas Cranach the Elder, Tbilisi Museum of Fine Arts

The Procuress by Lucas Cranach the Elder, Tbilisi Museum of Fine Arts

In 1945, following a special agreement between the

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

and

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

governments, numerous works of art constituting the

National Treasury of Georgia National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...

– manuscripts, metalwork, jewelry, enamels, paintings – evacuated by the Georgian government-in-exile following the 1921 Red Army invasion, were returned to Tbilisi and added to the museum’s collection. The eminent Georgian art historian

Shalva Amiranashvili Shalva Amiranashvili ( ka, შალვა ამირანაშვილი; 26 March 1899 – 9 February 1975) was a Georgian art historian, one of the first to have engaged in systematic scholarly treatment of the art of Georgia. His name was ...

(after whom the museum is currently named), who was to head the museum for more than thirty years, played an important role in the formation of the collection. The museum became officially known as the Art Museum of Georgia in 1950, the same year that it moved to the building it now occupies. Built in 1838 in neoclassic style, the building housed a theological seminary in the

Imperial Russia The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the List of Russian monarchs, Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended th ...

n period. The museum was placed, at the end of 2004, under the joint administration with several other museums, forming the Georgian National Museum.

Collections

The spacious rooms of the museum building house the permanent collection, consisting of sections of Georgian, Oriental, Russian, and European art. The most important of the museum’s collections is naturally that of Georgian art, illustrating the development of the national artistic culture over many centuries from ancient times to the present. The Oriental section comes next in its size and importance, and is one of the largest in the post-Soviet countries. Pieces of Persian fine arts, particularly Qajar art, is probably the most significant part of the Oriental collection. It includes several miniatures of Persian court artists – images of court beauties, and portraits of shahs and noblemen. The museum often holds temporary exhibitions of works from other collections in the country and abroad.

References

*''Art Museum of Georgia Tbilisi'', compiled and introduced by Tamaz Sanikidze (1985), Aurora Art Publishers, Leningrad.

External links

National Museum of Georgia
{{DEFAULTSORT:Art Museum Of Georgia Art museums and galleries in Georgia (country) Art museums established in 1920 Museums in Tbilisi 1920 establishments in Georgia (country)