Culture House S, Georgia

Culture House S is a former community centre in western Georgia. Once a focal point for workers’ culture and community in a prosperous Soviet-era tea-growing region, it now sits disused and decaying. Nearby is an associated administration building, now in use as residential properties. The public areas and stairs, which date from a similar time period, are included in this collection and provide engaging subjects for photography.

I visited Culture House S during my 2022 Georgia & Armenia Tour.

Soviet-Era Tea Plantations & Industrial Collectives

This area was an important part of Georgia’s Soviet tea sector. The area became a large plantation zone under Soviet agricultural planning. During the 1930s and 1940s, Soviet policies enforced the collectivisation of agriculture across member republics. Authorities restructured private landholdings into state-managed farms, with aims to boost food production for cities, support industrial growth, and generate income by exporting surplus. By the mid-1930s, the area dedicated to tea plantations exceeded 1,000 hectares.

Most towns established a cultural house to serve members of the local collective. Typically, surplus earnings financed these, resulting in a scale and decoration that reflected the productivity of the surrounding workforce. This collective farm was one of the most productive in the district, funding investment in the village. The 1950s saw the construction of a grand culture house and adjacent administrative buildings.

Socialist realism murals and Soviet architecture inside Culture House S

The impressive buildings hosted theatrical performances, community meetings, film screenings, and educational activities for the farm workers and their families. The auditorium has a traditional proscenium layout with a raised stage, curved balcony seating, and fixed rows of folding chairs.

The interior artwork is characteristic of late Stalinist Socialist Realism with decorative Neoclassical elements. The ceiling features elaborate stucco framing around large murals. These ceiling scenes depict idealised rural life, with a clear theme of collective farming and community celebrations.

Full-length depictions of archetypal Soviet citizens, all with a farming theme, adorn the side walls lining the upper balcony. The posing of each figure, either frontally or in slight profile, with simple tools or clothing indicates their role in society. There is an absence of individualisation, reinforcing their function as types rather than portraits of specific people.

Exploring the Administration Building

The adjoining administration building, constructed at the same time as the culture house, housed the management offices of the collective farm. It features a central staircase hall, decorative plasterwork, and modestly stylised neoclassical details. Currently, this building is in use as private apartments, so only the public areas were photographed during my visit.

The staircase is the architectural focal point of the building. Constructed in a split-flight layout, it rises three floors in two symmetrical runs. Three tall arched windows, facing the outside, frame the stairs on the upper floor. The pink paint on the walls is flaking, and water ingress has opened up the ceiling in several places, exposing the wooden lath beneath.

Bas-relief panels flank the stairs. These depict idealised figures (predominantly women) engaging in harvest, cultural, or maternal scenes. The design follows stylised socialist realism, with classical influences.

Renovation of the Culture House begins (2024)

The culture house is now under renovation, which began last year. Restoration teams will fully restore all architectural elements and murals, preserving this important heritage building for future generations.