Poet · Performer · Contemporary Georgian Voice
Tamar Shukakidze
Published in Arili and Afinaji. Nominee of the Tsinandali Award. Works translated into German and English.
Known for combining poetry with performative expression, bringing Georgian contemporary literature to international audiences.
About
A Voice Between Tradition and
Experiment
Tamar Shukakidze is a Georgian poet and performer whose works have appeared in leading Georgian literary journals including Arili and Afinaji.
She is a Tsinandali Prize nominee, and her poetry has been translated into German and English, bringing Georgian contemporary literature to international audiences.
Her practice bridges the page and the stage — each poem a performance, each reading an act of transformation. Drawing on Georgia’s rich literary heritage while forging a distinctly contemporary voice, her work explores memory, landscape, and the body as a vessel for language.
Publications
Published Works
Literary Journal
Arili
One of Georgia’s foremost literary journals, dedicated to contemporary poetry and prose.
Literary Journal
Afinaji
A prominent Georgian cultural publication fostering new literary voices and experimental writing.
Translation
German Translation Anthology
Selected poems translated into German, expanding the reach of Georgian contemporary poetry.
Translation
English Language Publications
Works translated into English for international literary audiences and festivals.
Selected Works
Poetry
The Garden of Letters
In the silence between words,
the garden grows wild —
letters bloom like night-jasmine
on the tongue of the wind.
Tsinandali Variations
The house remembers what the poet forgets —
a window open to the Caucasus,
light entering like a verse
that rewrites itself with every dawn.
Body as Archive
My spine — a shelf of inherited songs.
My hands — the translators,
turning gesture into grammar,
silence into a room you can enter.
On Stage
Performances
2024
Tbilisi International Poetry Festival
Featured performer combining spoken word with movement.
2023
Tsinandali Literary Evening
Award ceremony and live poetry reading
2022
Berlin Poetry Exchange
Bilingual Georgian-German performance event
International Presence
Translations
Bringing Georgian poetry to international readers through careful, considered translation.
German
Selected poems translated and published in German-language literary journals, fostering cultural dialogue between Georgia and the German-speaking world.
English
Poetry translated into English for international festivals, anthologies, and literary exchanges, expanding the reach of Georgian literary tradition.
German
Selected poems translated and published in German-language literary journals, fostering cultural dialogue between Georgia and the German-speaking world.
English
Poetry translated into English for international festivals, anthologies, and literary exchanges, expanding the reach of Georgian literary tradition.
Beyond Poetry
Cultural Engagement
Literary Festival Founder
Founded and organized a literary festival, creating a platform for emerging and established Georgian writers.
Arts Advocacy During COVID-19
During the pandemic, initiated and led various cultural activities to support artists and keep the creative community connected.
Interviews with Georgian Authors
Conducted in-depth interviews with Georgian authors over several years, documenting and amplifying contemporary Georgian literary voices.