The past that is always there

For my work Droa [„It‘s time“], I traveled to Georgia for two months in the spring of 2022 to photographically search for the identity of a country that is constantly changing and under permanent threat. In the following blog posts, I will tell you about my experiences and present the chapters of my work.

In the first part of my work, I looked at the consequences of Georgia‘s Soviet past. After 70 years of Georgian culture being suppressed by socialist doctrine and life being regulated by the Communist Party, many people were left behind with the transition to capitalism. Those who didn‘t make the transition often slipped into precarious circumstances, and state aid has been very limited ever since. What remains is a lack of perspective and the feeling of being left alone. If at all, only the next generations manage to imagine a better future, like Anastasia, whom I met in her home on the outskirts of Tbilisi. Her dream is to study in Europe and then come back home to do well for the community with the skills she has learned. She is sure that this is the only way to make a difference in her home country.

1: Anastasia (17) in her apartment, Nutsubidze Plato, Tbilisi, Georgia 2: Gldani microdistrict, Georgia 3: Residential complex, Vazisubani, Tbilisi, Georgia 4: Nona with her daughter in the microdistrict Gldani, Tbilisi, Georgia