Gabriela von Habsburg | |
|---|---|
 Pictured in 2012 | |
| Ambassador of Georgia to Germany | |
| In office 6 November 2009 – 15 January 2013 | |
| Preceded by | Levan Duchidze |
| Succeeded by | Vladimer Chanturia |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1956-10-14)14 October 1956 (age 69) |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 3 |
| Parents |
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| Website | www |
Gabriela von Habsburg[1] (born 14 October 1956) is an abstractsculptor, working mainly in stainless steel as well as stone-printedlithography. She was the ambassador ofGeorgia toGermany from 2009[2] to 2013.[3] She is the granddaughter ofCharles I, the lastemperor of Austria.
Gabriela von Habsburg was born inLuxembourg, the fourth child of the German politicianOtto von Habsburg, head of theHouse of Habsburg-Lorraine and erstwhileheir apparent to the throne ofAustria-Hungary, andRegina (née Prinzessin von Sachsen-Meiningen). She was baptised with the names Gabriela Maria Charlotte Felicitas Elisabeth Antonia. The name in her birth certificate is Gabriela von Österreich-Ungarn.[4]
Gabriela von Habsburg was raised at her parents' home inexile, Villa Austria, inPöcking,Bavaria. As a result of theHabsburgs' banishment from Austria, she feels that she grew up devoid of any sense of pride of country and thus identifies as European.[5] She believes that herdynasty'srole in history shaped her upbringing, noting that her family "never spoke about anything at mealtimes except politics".[5] A granddaughter of the lastAustrian emperor,Charles I, she does not use the traditional Habsburg-Lorraine titles ("Princess Imperial andArchduchess ofAustria, Princess Royal ofHungary andBohemia", with thestyle ofImperial and Royal Highness).[5][6]
After graduating in 1976, Gabriela von Habsburg studied philosophy for two years at theLudwig Maximilian University of Munich. From 1978 to 1982, she studied art at the Munich Academy of Arts withRobert Jacobsen andEduardo Paolozzi.
Since 2001, she has been an art professor at the Academy of Arts ofTbilisi,Georgia while also teaching at the Summer Academy of Arts inNeuburg an der Donau, Germany until 2005. She found the creativity and cheerfulness of her students in the face of the adversity then prevalent in Georgia inspiring.[5] During her tenure there she was grantedGeorgian citizenship.[5] Her five hectare vineyard in Georgia produces wine.[5]
In November 2009, Georgia appointed Gabriela von Habsburg as its ambassador to Germany, and since March 2011, she has maintained a flat inBerlin.[5][7] Believing that Georgian history served as acrucible for European culture, she has maintained that the liberalizing reforms of PresidentMikheil Saakashvili have been welcome and invigorating for Georgia's people and economy, which has prompted her to work for Georgia's membership in theEuropean Market.[5] She was dismissed from her position in January 2013, after the change of government in Georgia in October 2012.
Since March 2010, Gabriela von Habsburg has represented Georgia at the International Council[8] of theAustrian Service Abroad.
On 30 August 1978, inPöcking, Bavaria, Gabriela was married civilly and on 5 September 1978 religiously atMont Sainte-Odile to Christian Meister (born 1 September 1954 inStarnberg), a German attorney. Theydivorced in 1997 and the marriage wasannulled canonically.[6] Gabriela was the only one of her parents' seven children to marry a spouse who had neither a title nor an aristocratic name. They have three children and five grandchildren.
Gabriela von Habsburg-Lothringen is sometimes referred to as "Archduchess of Austria", a reference to the defunct familial title of her grandfather, but says that "I do not like my family titles. Whatever you inherit, you haven’t done anything for".[1]
House of Habsburg-Lorraine: Grand Mistress Dame of theOrder of the Starry Cross[11]
Georgia: Recipient of theOrder of the Golden FleeceGeorgia: Recipient of theOrder of Honor[12]Gabriela von Habsburg. Sculpture (English version)By Prof. Mathias Frehner and Prof. Carla Schulz-HofmannBucher GmbH & Co. Druck Verlag Netzwerk; (22. Oktober 2007)ISBN 978-3-902612-31-1
Gabriela von Habsburg.Skulpturen (German version)ISBN 978-3-902612-20-5
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