GUDIASHVILI Lado (Vladimir Davidovich)

March 18, 1896 (Tiflis) — July 20, 1980 (Tbilisi)

Painter, graphic artist, scene-designer, monumental artist

Lado Gudiashvili was born to a family of railway employee. In 1910–1914 he studied in the School of painting and sculpture under the Caucasian Society for Encouragement of Fine Arts in Tiflis. Since 1914 he taught in the 2nd men’s gymnasium in Tiflis. In 1915 Gudiashvili participated in the exhibition of the Caucasian Society for Encouragement of Fine Arts in Tiflis. In the same year the first personal exhibition of Gudiashvili was held in Tiflis.

Till 1919 Gudiashvili played a leading role in the artistic and literary circles of Tiflis. He communicated with members of the neosymbolism group The Blue Horns. In 1919 he painted the Khimerioni café together with the artists S. Y. Sudeikin, K. M. Zdanevich and D. N. Kakabadze. In the same year he left Tiflis and traveled to Italy and France. From 1920 till 1925 Gudiashvili lived in Paris, where he attended the Ranson Academy. He was influenced by art of L. S. Bakst and he took a great interest in Art Deco style. He met a lot of artists, representatives of Paris art life, such as A. Modigliani, M. F. Larionov, N. S. Goncharova and others.

In 1924–1925 Gudiashvili worked for the N. F. Baliev cabaret theatre Die Fledermaus (“The Bat”) in Paris. He created many costume and scene designs for different performances, in particular revue Near of Tiflis (1924).

At the end of 1925, the artist returned to Tiflis. In 1926 his personal exhibition was held in the Drama studio of the Theatre named after Sh. Rustaveli.

Gudiashvili created costume and scene designs for the performances Mzeta-mze and Lamara by K. Marjanishvili in the Theatre named after Sh. Rustaveli. Since 1926 he taught in the Georgian Academy of Fine Arts.

In 1930s–1950s Gudiashvili worked as a painter in Tbilisi Opera and Ballet Theatre. He depicted old Georgia in his portraits and paintings. He combined the medieval Georgian art and the West European art movements of 1920s in his works.

During the World War II in 1942–1943, Gudiashvili created a series of anti-fascist ink drawings. He also worked as a book graphic artist, drew illustrations to Wisdom of Fancy by S. S. Orbeliani (two versions of 1939 and 1960) and Georgian folk songs by G. Chkhikvadze.

In 1946 Gudiashvili painted the Kashveti Church in Tbilisi again; that caused his expulsion from the All-Union Communist Party Bolsheviks (VKPb) and from Tbilisi Academy of Fine Arts.

In 1957 Gudiashvili was conferred he title of the People’s Artist of the Georgian SSR (Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic). In 1972 he was conferred the title of the People’s Artist of the USSR, in 1976 — the Hero of Socialist Labour.

Lado Gudiashvili was one of the most significant Georgian painters of the 20th century. The artist masterly combined dramatic grotesque with poetic mystery in his early paintings, which depicted romantic folk customs and life. In 1925, when Gudiashvili returned to the motherland, he was close to the old Caucasian and Persian traditions in art. The painter used the mythological allegory and folk motifs with a pleasure in his works. Ornamental, decorative elements and high expressivity were characteristic for the artist’s manner of painting.

Works by Lado Gudiashvili are in many museum and private collections, including the State Tretyakov Gallery, the A. A. Bakhrushin State Central Theatre Museum, the State Museum of Oriental Art, Moscow Museum of Modern Art, and the State Art Museum of Georgia in Tbilisi.