Faces of Georgia - photographic trip to the nation, Georgia - Brief Article

PSA Journal, July, 2002 by Derek M. Slattery

Georgia lies between the Black and Caspian Seas--south of Russia, protected by the Caucasian Mountains and north of Turkey, Armenia and Azerbaidjan. Georgia is a country with rich culture and poverty living side by side.

Alexandre Dumas wrote:

"The people of Georgia are noble, faithful, adventurous, generous and warlike."

How true these words are ever since their independence from Russia coupled with a lack of natural resources. Poverty is evident in both cities and rural regions; the latter makes up the main part of the country, but the struggle for life is maintained with dignity and self pride. In this strength of character and freedom of expression lay the opportunity for good portraiture and/or photojournalism, as one can capture the life and soul of the people and their innermost feelings.

Georgia lends itself to monochrome photography: not only the culture and its historical past, but the people going about their daily chores trying to earn a meager living in the capital of Tbilisi or farming around their homesteads in the rural regions, which comprise a large portion of the country. Either way, there is much hardship.

Photographic assignment in Georgia requires a guide or friend with knowledge of the various regions and speaks the local language in order to make direct contact and to endure the very harsh conditions. All forms of transportation outside the main cities are ancient and primitive, whether by bus or car. Railways do not penetrate into the mountainous regions.

The roads like the track to Ushguli (approximately 8,000 feet) are carved out of the mountainside and are often subject to landslides, making such journeys arduous and treacherous, especially in the winter months. These journeys have to be undertaken on foot, horseback or by vintage Russian Jeeps, often welded together to make them roadworthy for local use as taxis.

The landscape and the people make every bit of the journey to the final destination worthwhile.

The village folk are very hospitable, even to strangers. They offer accommodation, food and an abundance of local wine when one stops off to photograph sheep shearers or any form of cottage industry. This generosity far surpasses the western world and it is this deep friendship that makes Georgia an everlasting experience never to be forgotten.

Derek M. Slattery, APSA Geneva, Switzerland