Where once the grey iron man stood... These are the opening lines for the six essays written for six conceptual projects that aim to reconstruct the former Lenin Square (today Liberty Square) after Georgia gained independence and Lenin's statue was removed. The competition to select the best proposal for the liberty square was held in 1995 almost five years after the removal of the statue. The Studio Poetics of architecture submitted six conceptual projects as a non-competition entry.
Professor and group leader: Shota Bostanashvili. Group of students: David Sukhiashvili, Shota Botchorishivli, Dimitri Napetvaridze, Irakli Svimonishvili. 1992.
The main message of the variations is to introduce a form that carries the idea of liberty to the vacant square.
As the text says: "We have witnessed a historical miracle: the idol has fallen. Reconstruction and transformation of Lenin Square to Liberty Square is a reconstruction of culture, not a mere rebuilding of structures and the site".
The liberty square gives place to big play of culture and invites the citizens to engage in this play.
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On the liberty square, where the grey iron man stood, now an alley of Menhirs unfolds. In the forms erected like menhirs, bringing to mind paint tubes, guided by a given piece of music an electronic device controls the inflatable pneumatic structures' shape, flow, rythm, color and light. A beautiful spirit dwells in them.
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On the liberty square, where the grey iron man stood, everything and everyone was in deep sleep. Now all is awake. A giant frame cube is torn diagonally. An inflatable pneumatic structure, connected to the control device, winds its route through the lattice. Following the rhythm and pitch of music the structure inflates, mutates, changes colors and shapes and overflows towards the endlessness of skies, as they lose the firm grip of the lattice acquiring a shape of their own. And during the night... the effect becomes tenfold with bright colors against the backdrop of the starry night.
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On the liberty square, where the grey iron man stood, now a huge open hall is erected. On the 'roof' supported by four giant pillars another town can be found. In short, it is a Town Hall, a theater, a common living room of the city. Under the table nature and art find their place as part of an exhibition. A new amphitheater next to the square invites everyone to this shared homey space. Come, visit our Town Hall.
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On the liberty square, where the grey iron man stood now you find the Little Prince's Island: fragment of child's paintings brought to life. A cozy naivist world. Small house, violets, and lilies, mushroom and butterfly; a ladder reaching to the white cloud. The cloud is an artificial inflatable structure responding to the rhythm and pitch of music. The green island is transparent like an emerald illuminating the underground space. And during the night... The colorful cloud illuminates the city. Come to our town.
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On the liberty square, where the grey iron man stood, a bird sanctuary sits, golden. Tweets, chirps and bird songs echo through the surroundings. The birds willingly come to the cage, where they find home and food. They say, in the old times people had such cages, only much smaller in size to hold the birds in captivity. Only the elderly of our town remember those times. If you have caged birds at home, bring them to our bird sanctuary. It is the only cage for freedom on earth.
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On the liberty square, where the grey iron man stood, you find the abode of passions. Imagine a giant glass demijohn on the square, in the middle of the town. Under the vessel, there is a mechanical room with giant air fans and a mail sorting machine. The townspeople come to the Vessel: they write on colorful note papers everything that disturbs their mind or everything they yearn to speak out. They throw the notes into the mailboxes at the vessel. Powerful fans create a swirl of written papers inside the giant demijohn. The papers' flight follows the music: Mozart makes them float gently and gracefully, Wagner makes them violent, and Paliashvili... Every spring, on a red-letter day the top lid is opened and all that was written erupts. The townspeople chase the note papers. The whole town is engaged in this big play... The town is alive. The town has townspeople and not mere residents. Come to our town.