The project is part of an agreement signed between Associazione Giovanni Secco Suardo and LEPL “National Agency for Cultural Heritage Preservation of Georgia” and arises from the need to secure some icons from the Christian era belonging to the collection of the National Treasury preserved in the Museum of Fine Arts “Shalva Amiranashvili” (Tbilisi), in particular:
- “The Virgin” Icon of Vlaherni
- “Transfiguration” Icon of Zarzma
- “The Virgin” Icon of Tsilkani
- “The Anchi Triptych”
- “The Khakhuli Triptych”
- “The Virgin” Icon of Zarzma (The Virgin of Laklakidze)
- “The Atskuri Triptych”
- “The Savior” Icon of Katskhi
- “The Virgin” Icon of Nuova Shuamta
- “The Virgin” Icon of Bitchvinta
The project involved not only the training of the internal staff of the National Museum in Tbilisi, but also the planning and coordination of a complex plan for the reorganization, movement and relocation of the icons and 13,000 other artifacts held in the museum.
Developed in several missions, it saw the participation of:
Karlo Sikharulidze – Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Youth Affairs of Georgia, Tbilisi, Georgia
Nika Akhalbedashvili – Director of the National Museum of Fine Arts Shalva Amiranashvili, Tbilisi, Georgia
Vakhtang Tsinitsadze – Head of the Collection Management Department of the Georgian National Museum, Tbilisi, Georgia
Vakhiang Khoshiaria – Head of the Collection Management Department of the Georgian National Museum, Tbilisi, Georgia
Nino Kalandadze – Head of the Research Institute for Restoration and Conservation of the Georgian National Museum, Tbilisi, Georgia
Ermine Magradze – Restorer of the National Museum of Fine Arts Shalva Amiranashvili, Tbilisi, Georgia
Nutza Adeishivili – Restorer, Tbilisi, Georgia
Maria Fratelli – Art Historian, Director of the Museum Houses and Special Projects Sector of the Municipality of Milan, Director of the Boschi di Stefano House Museum, Francesco Messina Museum Studio, Casa della Memoria, CASVA, Milan, Italy.
Davide Riggiardi – Restorer, Professor of Restoration at the Academy of Fine Arts of Brera, Milan, and of Methodologies for the Movement of Works of Art at the Academy of Fine Arts of Bologna, Italy
Interpreter: Nino Chihviladze – Italian/Georgian translation