MAIA TSINAMDZGVRISHIVILI
Maia Tsinamdzgvrishvili lives in the Republic of Georgia. This ancient civilization created fine gold jewelry as early as 1000BC and later in 200AD was one route for the ‘Silk Road’ to China. While we may be surprised to learn that Maia’s exquisite artwork is constructed entirely of silk, to her it is a material that is part of her heritage.
Maia uses pure silk fabric, threads and cocoons, which she colors herself, and mounts them on silk paper, felt and/or material all of which she also makes by hand. As Maia says of her process –
“I am inspired by nature and the realities of the life and my surroundings. During the everyday working the process of creating which is very important and interesting for me gives possibility to find new forms and structures. The choice of all the interesting and different kinds of methods comes after I have assembled the idea. I combine techniques with each other, but the most important is that there must be synergy It is the skills and ability to compose a harmony of colour and the form which brings forth art works of great textural intensity and subtlety.” (Maia’s own words. English is her third language behind Georgian and Russian.)
But there is more than fascinating technique that produces art such as this. There is the love of tradition, materials and of creating beauty that Maia weaves into her work. She is an old soul in an old culture who spins silk into contemporary pieces for us to contemplate and marvel at.
Maia studied at the Tbilisi Vocational Art College and Tbilisi State Academy of Fine Arts, Textile Department. She is a member of the Georgian Textile Group and the Georgian Artists’ Union. Maia has exhibited her work in international textile exhibitions in Poland, Switzerland, Israel, Russia, China, Belgium, Netherlands, France and throughout Georgia. When she came to America for the first time in 2011, in addition to B.I.G. Arts she exhibited and conducted workshops in Maine and Massachusetts. We are very pleased to be exhibiting Maia’s work at Watson MacRae Gallery. Maia lives in the capital city of Tbilisi where she is a full time artist and teacher of textiles.
