NATELA GRIGALASHVILI AND IMAGES OF GEORGIA

This is the last meeting with Aleksandra Szwedo as part of the PHOTOSTORIES series. The subject of the lecture will be Georgia – a country with deep cultural traditions, immersed in centuries-old geopolitical tensions, suspended between the East and the West, where documentary photography has gained extraordinary expressive power. From the beginning of the 20th century to the present day, the camera has become a tool for telling stories and building identity in this region.
Women have played an important role in this history. Already during World War I, Nino Jorjadze, the first Georgian female photographer, documented frontline operations as a volunteer of the International Red Cross. Her photos, taken between 1914 and 1918, are one of the first female perspectives in the history of war photography.
Today, the female perspective in Georgian photography is continued by Natela Grigalashvili – one of the most expressive authors of her generation. For years, she has been documenting life in the mountainous regions of the country, far from the center. With her camera, she travels the peripheries, lives among local communities, builds relationships based on trust and closeness. Her series are intimate, deeply humanistic portraits of everyday life – tender stories about disappearing traditions, loneliness and the strength of people, especially women.

During the lecture, we will look at how photography in Georgia becomes a space for stories – personal and collective – and how it functions as a tool for cultural survival and social commentary.