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“Rocks and Waters”. UCL student and Ubani workshop results exhibition
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“Rocks and Waters”. UCL student and Ubani workshop results exhibition

19 April 2025
This exhibition ‘Rocks & Waters’ explores the evolving relationship between natural and social environments, offering a multidisciplinary perspective into how different forces shape urban landscapes. The project combines expert insights and collaborative efforts to create an interactive, exploratory space that invites visitors to take part in developing a multimodal perspective of the city.
‘Rocks & Waters’ exhibition installation view, 2024
Courtesy of Ubani—Tbilisi Cityscape Research Center, copyright Anya Kholina

In 2024 Ubani hosted a two-week workshop with students from University College London, supported by the Laidlaw Foundation — Saveliy Tesis, Arya Chanda and Paul Reynolds. Held in Tbilisi, the workshop focused on tools for exploring the urban landscape, covering topics such as geomorphology, data visualization, and social observation. The UCL students concentrated on examining Tbilisi's physical features, climate, and social dynamics through quantitative analysis and data visualization.

The results of the spatial mapping workshops were presented on the exhibition “Rocks and Waters” as an interactive installation and accompanied by interviews with experts in fields such as architecture, sociology, and geomorphology. This marks the initial iteration of Ruka, a mapping initiative led by Ubani. Ruka serves as a platform that aims to engage experts and enthusiasts of diverse disciplinary backgrounds in collaborative modeling of the city. Leveraging the use of technology to develop a multimodal perspective of the city it embraces urban complexity without reducing it to a single data point.

Nata Tatunashvili Architect, researcher, and educator. Nata is the co-founder of NWDS, a multidisciplinary architecture office powered by female minds and Ubani, a non-profit organization dedicated to researching Tbilisi's cityscape.
Frederick Chando Kim An architect, researcher, and Assistant Professor in Computational Design at the National University of Singapore. His work explores the use of machine learning in architectural form generation and analysis. He earned his PhD from EPFL's Media x Design Lab, where his thesis was nominated for EPFL and City of Lausanne prizes. Frederick holds degrees from Harvard GSD (M.Arch) and MIT (B.Sc. in Art and Design). His professional experience includes roles at Convergeo, AGPS Architecture, Safdie Architects, SOM, and Gensler. He co-leads Creative Data Critical Design and has co-curated exhibitions like “Artificial Architecture” at EPFL.
Mariam Jibuti A researcher at the Institute of Social Research and Analysis, and a PhD student at Tbilisi State University in the field of sociology. Her doctoral topic concerns the impact of urban planning on the social and emotional well-being of citizens in the example of 5 self-governing cities of Georgia (Tbilisi, Rustavi, Batumi, Poti, Kutaisi).
Elena Darjania An urban planner, researcher, and educator based in Tbilisi with 14 years of experience. She currently leads a team tasked with reimagining tools and protocols for Georgia's climate-oriented, participatory, and integrated municipal investment projects. With a career spanning roles in international organizations, the private sector, and academia, Elena demonstrates expertise in policy formulation, urban innovation, and applied research. In addition to her professional practice, Elena teaches an Architecture Thinking class at the Free University of Tbilisi.
Saveliy Tesis Student of University College London, recipient of the Laidlaw Scholars Foundation grant, participant of UCL and Ubani workshop. His interest lies at the intersection of hardware and software, with a particular passion for applied machine learning. Paul Reynolds Student of University College London, recipient of the Laidlaw Scholars Foundation grant, and participant of the UCL and Ubani workshop. His interest lies in the fields of maths, computer science and machine learning. Arya Chanda Student of University College London, recipient of the Laidlaw Scholars Foundation grant, participant of UCL and Ubani workshop. His interest lies in the fields of history and post-Soviet urban development.
Interactive installation. ‘Rocks & Water’ exhibition, 2024
© Ubani—Tbilisi Cityscape Research Center

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