Born
in Tbilisi, Georgia, Merab's attraction to painting started very early. At the
age of 10, he already knew he wanted to be a painter. After completing his
studies at the Tbilisi State Academy of Arts, he moved to Belgium to further
his Arts studies at La Cambre Academy first, and then at the Academie Royale
des Beaux-Arts in Brussels. Due to historical family ties, Merab spends his
whole youth and childhood in Georgia with artists. By the age of 25, Merab followed his passion. He participated in various group
exhibitions and had his first solo exhibition in 1993.
His style has evolved with
time. From very traditional motives and patterns, his painting has undergone
radical changes both in its spiritual as in its physical conception. In synch with
time and space, he has added a new dimension to his works in the form of
handmade acrylic figurines. This addition has allowed the artist to push
further the technical boundaries imposed by his art and add both a new 3D
dimension to his paintings and a way to play with the shadows created by the
figurines, sculpted on the canvas. According to Merab, shadows shape, provoke
tensions, disturb tonalities, and give depths that would otherwise be missed.
Merab currently lives in Brussels.
