Gvantsa Jishkariani (b. 1991, Rustavi) is a multimedia artist and curator. She graduated from the Faculty of Architecture of the Tbilisi State Academy of the Fine Arts (2013) and later completed her master’s program in Creative Mediation at CCA-Tbilisi (2015).
Jishkariani is fascinated by Soviet-propagandistic arts and traditional craft techniques. Her work investigates imprints left by the past and engages with the images and influences of today and tomorrow. Humour often features in her exploration of deeply personal and socially relevant topics. Born in the same year as Georgia’s independence, she grew up amid chaos and hardship, experiences that have shaped her personal and collective narrative. Her artwork delves into precarious situations and extreme vulnerability while demonstrating remarkable resilience.
Jishkariani has exhibited widely in Georgia and internationally, including in New York, Munich, Brussels, Vienna, Prague, Zurich, and Naples. She received the Prince Claus Foundation Seed Awards in 2021, was included in the Forbes 30 under 30 list in 2020, resident artist at Lottozero Prato, Italy in 2022, won the NARS Foundation Studio Grant in New York in 2019, Fotograf Gallery Curator in residence 2019, Binz 39 resident in Zurich in 2018, received the Tsinandali Award in Visual Arts in 2017, and was a resident artist of Frauenkulturburo NRW e.V., Dusseldorf, Germany.
Selected solo exhibitions include Trauma Porn (2025) at Raster Gallery, Warsaw; Dress of a Thousand Oceans (2023) at CH64 Gallery, Tbilisi; I Hate Poetry (2023) and I Dream of Fire (2022) at The Why Not Gallery, Tbilisi; Together Forever (2020) at Open Space, Tbilisi; Permanent Adolescence (2020) at Ballon Rouge, Brussels; Who Will Record History? (2019) at Project Artbeat, Tbilisi; a Tree (2018) at A01 Gallery, Naples; Reptilians with Wings (2018) at Template Bucharest; Goods Are Left on the Shelves (2018), at Nectar Gallery, Tbilisi; Savanna Savage (2017) at Project ArtBeat, Batumi, Georgia; Whales Are Lonely (2016) at the State Silk Museum, Tbilisi; Witchcraft and Curiosity (2016) at A01 Gallery, Naples; and Counterfeit Goods (2016) at Yarat, Baku.
Selected duo/group exhibitions include Tbilisi Independent (2024), Frieze Cork Street No 9, London; Where To? (2024) High Line Nine Galleries, CH64 Gallery, NYC; Unbound Trajectories of the Future (2024) Goethe Institute, Tbilisi; Rings a Bell (2024) Balloon Rouge, Brussels; Nothing New in The East - AKT Pforzheim (2023) Germany; Ring, Ring, Ring (2023) Pal Project, Paris; Temple of Stray Cats (2023) Catbox Contemporary, NY; I am Nobody, who are you? (2022) Rhizome, Kortrijk, Belgium; Soft opening (2022) Halle13, Vienna.
In addition to her artistic practice, Jishkariani has an active curatorial career. She co-founded the Tbilisi-based galleries PATARA Gallery (2017) and The Why Not Gallery (2018), which support young artists. She curated the Tbilisi Photo Festival Night of Photography (2017–2019) and founded Georgia’s first contemporary art and fashion magazine, *Gar-Gar* (2013–2018).
Her works are part of prominent private and public contemporary art collections, including: Alain Servais Collection, Collezione Taurisano, Royal Family of UAE Collection, HRH Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan , Fabio Frasca Collection, Andrea Boghi Collection, Marval Collection, Atinati Collection, TBC Bank Collection, Vasili Tsereteli Collection, and The State Silk Museum in Georgia, among others.
