Exhibition “Sleeping Medusa”
By Mariam Chanishvili
Wednesday, July 3
Gorgonas, the first feminist art collective in Georgia, is presenting the first exhibition, which will be opened on July 4 at 19:00 at the Silk Museum and will last to July 7.
The exhibition “Sleeping Medusa” is connected to the myth “Medusa Gorgona”, according to which, Neptune raped Medusa Gorgona at Athena’s palace. However, Athena punished Medusa and turned her into a monster with giant teeth and snakes instead of hair.
Gorgona petrified people with her gaze. Perseus defeats Medusa with the helmet and shield from Athena. He readily attacks sleeping Medusa and kills because he sees her reflection in his shield and does not have to face her.
“The exhibition aims to present emotionally charged conceptual objects. The central topic is a reflection, which to us is not static, but a dynamic process. Reflection, thinking about oneself and one’s life, communication with the self is usually mediated through patriarchal perspective. It is expressed through the same “language.” The language lacks words, symbols, forms that can describe women’s experience. We want to rethink the marginal experiences of women. This time the myth of Medusa Gorgona inspired us,” noted the Gorgonas Collective.
The collective, founded in 2019, connects visual artists from different fields, writers and researchers and currently unites 15 women.
It aims to fight the systems of oppression using creative methods; it aims to empower women and create spaces for female artists to express themselves and connect.
The collective is based on solidarity among women. Caring for each other’s development by creating a non-competitive and safe environment to strengthen each other, is very important for Gorgonas. Gender equality, women’s empowerment, and economic equality are inseparable topics.
“We decided to start Gorgonas because we all agree that art is a powerful political tool to fight against inequality. Creating a safe space and building solidarity was the most important objective during the last 6 months. And everybody in the group contributed to it. We intend to go on to extend our group and turn it into a bigger network,” said Nukri Tabidze, the co-founder of Gorgonas.
The Gorgonas collective is funded and supported by Women Fund.
Even though there has been a development in terms of women’s rights in Georgia, feminist activists still find themselves facing a deeply-rooted culture that impedes further progress.
