We Must Believe in Spring. Talks in Tbilisi

Author and Politician Giorgi Kandelaki will be speaking this evening (November 1st 2023) at the National Parliamentary Library on The Weaponisation of memory by Russian information warfare.

In his lecture, Giorgi will address Stalin's resurgent legacy in Georgia in recent years – a phenomenon which has seen the erection of eleven new statues of the former dictator across the country. He argues that this revival stems from the Russian government's use of disinformation, leveraging Stalin's Georgian background to foster anti-Western sentiments and promote nativist Georgian nationalism, thereby slowing the country's westward progress.

The talk will be delivered in English.

The talk will take place at 6pm at The National Parliamentary Library of Georgia, 5 Gudiashvili Street, Tbilisi

https://www.instagram.com/p/CzGL9KGthy5/

Hi all,

Quick reminder that it's our first lecture of this semester tomorrow:

Researching a Dark Object: The Lost Women of the Soviet Leadership

Ekaterina Furtseva's journey as the only woman in the Soviet leadership for 20 years brought her international and domestic acclaim. As Khrushchev's aide, she was one of the most influential women of the 1950s. Yet, her historical significance has been shrouded in misconception, distortions, and sexist myths.

In her talk, Dr. Ismene Brown will explore the astonishing reality of Furtseva's career, raising profound questions about her role in history.

Time: 5pm
Location: https://maps.app.goo.gl/2PCo1zEUR81Ub9nU7

This promises to be a great talk in a stunning building. Not to be missed!

We're excited to announce our first lecture of this season from Dr. Ismene Brown on Ekaterina Furtseva. The talk will take place on October 6th 2023 at 5pm at the National Parliamentary Library.

Researching a dark object: The lost woman of the Soviet leadership

Ekaterina Furtseva’s position as the only woman in the Soviet leadership for some 20 years brought her world visibility as well as home attention. She was Khrushchev’s aide and the world’s most powerful woman in the late 1950s, subsequently the USSR Culture Minister, yet her true historical place has been entirely obscured by decades of errors, narrative falsifications and sexist fables, echoed by scholars who neglect basic checks. Ismene's talk discusses the challenges in researching this occluded and objectified figure, and a range of methods that exposes the reality and radical questions raised by her career.

💫 NEW LECTURE ALERT 💫

What Is to Be Done When There Is Nothing to Be Done

Masha Gessen & Andrey Babitsky in conversation

⏱️ Wednesday July 5th, 19.30 GMT+4 (https://fb.me/e/fyXot1Oew)

📍Writers’ House of Georgia, 13 Ivane Machebeli, Tbilisi

Tickets on the door: 30 GEL

The feeling of helplessness and deprivation of agency pervade authoritarian societies; in fact, these are necessary conditions for these societies to persist, in Russia and elsewhere. As we both believe the feelings are ungrounded and there is always hope, we are going to talk about the ways to bring change and discuss the theory and practice behind our humble optimism. What — if anything — does work and can it still be done in the midst of a genocidal war?

The venue has limited capacity and we kindly ask you to register if you plan to attend:
https://forms.gle/xqkcs8a3gSHZ1rrP7

For upcoming talks, follow us at:
https://t.me/wemustbelieveinspring
https://instagram.com/wemustbelieveinspring

Channel name was changed to «We Must Believe in Spring. Talks in Tbilisi»

🔗 LECTURE RECORDING 🔗
Follow the link to watch our talk from Rikki Brown last Wednesday. Rikki explored the histories and politics that have shaped Georgian wine over the last 8000 years, talking us through the influence of politics on place, and the tastes that emerge from that place.

https://youtu.be/PRctrXey6eA

Rikki Brown is a Ph.D. candidate in Cultural Anthropology at the University of California, Santa Cruz. She is currently conducting fieldwork on the impacts of geopolitics on the Georgian wine economy.

✨LECTURE FOLLOW-UP✨

Last Wednesday, we made a wonderful journey into the world of Georgian wine. Rikki Brown, a Ph.D. candidate in Cultural Anthropology at the University of California, talked about what an anthropological approach to winemaking is, explained how geopolitics affects the place, and let us taste some of the unique Georgian wine varieties.

A link to Rikki’s instagram: https://instagram.com/reekee.cim?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

Some photos from the evening here, and the recording will follow soon!

Thanks to all who attended 🤩

‼️LECTURE THIS WEDNESDAY‼️

https://fb.me/e/OaKDuOrc

The history of Georgian wine and winemaking dates back around 8000 years. Since the beginning, it has managed to withstand imperial rule, occupation, and colonial aggression. For Georgians, wine is far more than a drink. It serves as a conduit to navigate heritage, memory, and politics. History has determined how Georgian wine is produced, marketed, and distributed. And today, Georgia’s wine economy is once again in a transformative state, straddling a new East-West market divide that influences how Georgian wine is made, where it's popular, and how it is impacting local producers.

In this lecture, Rikki Brown will talk us through the influence of politics on place, and the tastes that emerge from that place. We will then look at how to take an anthropological approach to tasting, discussing, and analysing the places where wine is sold. Along the way, we will explore the relationship between politics and wine, and examine how context can impact our perception of taste and place.

Rikki is a Ph.D. candidate in Cultural Anthropology at the University of California, Santa Cruz. She is currently conducting fieldwork on the impacts of geopolitics on the Georgian wine economy. Her work is funded by American Councils and the American Research Institute of the South Caucasus. If you ask her what her favourite Georgian wine is, she'll always say Krakhuna because it's the easiest variety to pronounce.
The lecture will be in English with comment and discussion in English and Russian.

⏱️ Wednesday June 7th, 19.30 GMT+4

📍Wine Boutique Tbilisi
17 Anastasia Eristav-Khoshtaria St

💸 as always, we are fundraising money for the evacuation initiative Helping to Leave, https://helpingtoleave.org/en, which has a 24/7 gender-sensitive assistance team. Donate online here: https://helpingtoleave.org/en#donate

💫 NEW LECTURE ALERT 💫

https://fb.me/e/OaKDuOrc

The history of Georgian wine and winemaking dates back around 8000 years. Since the beginning, it has managed to withstand imperial rule, occupation, and colonial aggression. For Georgians, wine is far more than a drink. It serves as a conduit to navigate heritage, memory, and politics. History has determined how Georgian wine is produced, marketed, and distributed. And today, Georgia’s wine economy is once again in a transformative state, straddling a new East-West market divide that influences how Georgian wine is made, where it's popular, and how it is impacting local producers.

In this lecture, Rikki Brown will talk us through the influence of politics on place, and the tastes that emerge from that place. We will then look at how to take an anthropological approach to tasting, discussing, and analysing the places where wine is sold. Along the way, we will explore the relationship between politics and wine, and examine how context can impact our perception of taste and place.

Rikki is a Ph.D. candidate in Cultural Anthropology at the University of California, Santa Cruz. She is currently conducting fieldwork on the impacts of geopolitics on the Georgian wine economy. Her work is funded by American Councils and the American Research Institute of the South Caucasus. If you ask her what her favourite Georgian wine is, she'll always say Krakhuna because it's the easiest variety to pronounce.
The lecture will be in English with comment and discussion in English and Russian.

⏱️ Wednesday June 7th, 19.30 GMT+4

📍Wine Boutique Tbilisi
17 Anastasia Eristav-Khoshtaria St

💸 as always, we are fundraising money for the evacuation initiative Helping to Leave, https://helpingtoleave.org/en, which has a 24/7 gender-sensitive assistance team. Donate online here: https://helpingtoleave.org/en#donate

✨LECTURE FOLLOW-UP✨

Вчера мы провели встречу в уютном пространстве The Tbilisi School for Social Research. Нашей гостьей была чудесная Ника Мусави, журналистка, писательница и исследовательница из Азербайджана. Мы с большим интересом обсудили субкультуру лефтизма в современном Азербайджане и поговорили об его истоках, особенностях и перспективах.

‼️ LECTURE TOMORROW ‼️

https://fb.me/e/2Y695QUtP

Лефтизм в современном Азербайджане – это не столько идеология, и тем более не политическая деятельность, сколько субкультура. Современные азербайджанские левые – максимально маргинализированная группа, о существовании которой часть общества вообще не знает, а часть считает их опасными сумасшедшими, мечтающими восстановить Советский Союз. В условиях авторитарного режима и при почти полном отсутствии общественной поддержки и симпатии, деятельность азербайджанских левых носит, на первый взгляд, символический характер. Впервые азербайджанскими левые громко заявили о себе и привлекли к себе внимание во время второй карабахской войны и после нее, став одними из немногих, кто выступил с категорической антивоенной позицией.

На лекции мы поговорим о том, кто такие современные азербайджанские левые, каковы их особенности, чем они занимаются, какую (суб)культурную среду вокруг себя создают и есть ли у них хоть какие-то перспективы. А также – о том, почему репрессивная машина в Азербайджане обычно обходит левых стороной, и как вторая карабахская война повлияла на трансформацию азербайджанского левого сообщества.

Ника Мусави – журналист, писатель и исследователь из Азербайджана, специализирующийся на темах политической миграции и современных левых/диссидентских движений на постсоветском пространстве.

🧭 Wednesday May 24, 19:30 GMT+4

📍Tbilisi School for Social Research, 43 Vazha Pshavela Ave

💸 as always, we are fundraising money for the evacuation initiative Helping to Leave, https://helpingtoleave.org/en, which has a 24/7 gender-sensitive assistance team. Donate online here: https://helpingtoleave.org/en#donate

💫 NEW LECTURE ALERT 💫

https://fb.me/e/2Y695QUtP

Лефтизм в современном Азербайджане – это не столько идеология, и тем более не политическая деятельность, сколько субкультура. Современные азербайджанские левые – максимально маргинализированная группа, о существовании которой часть общества вообще не знает, а часть считает их опасными сумасшедшими, мечтающими восстановить Советский Союз. В условиях авторитарного режима и при почти полном отсутствии общественной поддержки и симпатии, деятельность азербайджанских левых носит, на первый взгляд, символический характер. Впервые азербайджанскими левые громко заявили о себе и привлекли к себе внимание во время второй карабахской войны и после нее, став одними из немногих, кто выступил с категорической антивоенной позицией.

На лекции мы поговорим о том, кто такие современные азербайджанские левые, каковы их особенности, чем они занимаются, какую (суб)культурную среду вокруг себя создают и есть ли у них хоть какие-то перспективы. А также – о том, почему репрессивная машина в Азербайджане обычно обходит левых стороной, и как вторая карабахская война повлияла на трансформацию азербайджанского левого сообщества.

Ника Мусави – журналист, писатель и исследователь из Азербайджана, специализирующийся на темах политической миграции и современных левых/диссидентских движений на постсоветском пространстве.

🧭 Wednesday May 24, 19:30 GMT+4

📍Tbilisi School for Social Research, 43 Vazha Pshavela Ave

💸 as always, we are fundraising money for the evacuation initiative Helping to Leave, https://helpingtoleave.org/en, which has a 24/7 gender-sensitive assistance team. Donate online here: https://helpingtoleave.org/en#donate

✨LECTURE FOLLOW-UP✨

Yesterday, we spent a delightful evening at Azarpesha, owned by the collector and wine connoisseur Luarsab Togonidze. We talked about the revival of Georgian traditions and their integration into contemporary life. Luarsab showed us traditional garments from different regions of Georgia and his unmatched collection of old Georgian drinking vessels.

Below are some publications about the clothing and jewellery brands, co-founded by Luarsab:

https://www.homofaber.com/en/discover/discover-kebzari
https://georgianjournal.ge/culture/8243-samoseli-pirveli--georgian-national-clothes-in-vogue-.html


Some photos from the evening here, and thanks to all who attended🤩