Gela Patiashvili

Gela Patiashvili, Born in Tbilisi in 1964, has worked across both adjacent and distinct artistic fields, including theatre, animation, literary texts, and occasionally journalism. However, drawing remained a constant presence in his life—one might say it became his most loyal companion.

His life, like his career, passed through France, where he spent 30 years, developing numerous exhibitions and projects before returning to Georgia, bringing with him his primary creative space: his studio and universities, where he teaches the art of animation. He also organizes discussion panels with art historians and fellow artists.

As he himself notes, Tbilisi has restored his youthful lightness—a place where complete and unapologetic freedom is possible, where “everything” still lies ahead, and where the act of creating, in itself, brings value to everyone.

Why dogs?

In these paintings, the mise-en-scènes are inspired by psychological, social, and spiritual stories. My dogs, with their undisguised emotionality, are able to accurately and without loss convey human and non-human nature. Within the compositions we have evil and good, oppressors and oppressed, happy and unhappy, even aggressive figures. We also have angels—real ones and, don’t be surprised, artificial ones too.

Here, dogs, unusually, seem to convey human emotions even better than humans themselves.

In the painting “Kingdom,” the work emphasizes the supremacy of the high ranks of the hierarchy, as well as the purity of blood, and accordingly, the severe incompatibility of the lower strata of society, the inferiority complex, hypocrisy, protest, and banal aggression. The characters, caught in an almost fresco-like environment, are devoid of gravity, as if the law of universal gravitation does not apply to them.

STUDIES AND PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITY

1986 - Georgian Polytechnic Institute
1992-1993 - Sorbonne, Art History, free listener, Paris, France
1995 - Atelier of Norbert Journot, Decorator, Paris, France
1996 - Children’s Theater of Clavel, Decorator, Paris, France
1996-1997 - Animation Studio Saban Int., Decorator, Paris, France
1997-1998 - Animation Studio Gaumont, Decorator, Paris, France
1998 - Arsirpo Film École, internship in film directing, Paris, France
1998-1999 - Animation Studio Saban Int., Decorator, Paris, France
2001 - Animation Studio Dargaud Marina, Art Director, Paris, France
2002 - Animation Studio Milleimage, Decorator, Paris, France
2017-2025 - Free University, VAADS, Professor of Animation Film, Tbilisi, Georgia
2022-2025 - Technical University of Tbilisi, International Design School, Professor of Animation Film, Tbilisi, Georgia


ANIMATION, CINEMA, PUBLICITY

1989 - “Guardians of Grail”, Marjanishvili Theater, Tbilisi, Georgia, Set Designer
1995 - “Futuroscope” - 100 Years of Cinema, Pavilion of Cinema, Set Designer, Poitiers, France
1996 - “Why-Why-Family”, animation series, Background Designer, Studio Saban Int., Paris, France
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Q0MWW2oTjU
1996 - “Beauties”, Children’s Theater of Clavel, Art Director, Paris, France
1996 - “L’air du temps”, Nina Ricci, Publicity, Set Designer, Paris, France
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gnA_QyNMgB0
1997 - “Le Magicien”, animation series, Background Designer, Studio Gaumont Int., Paris, France
1997 - “Oggi et les cafards”, animation series, Background Designer, Studio Gaumont Int., Paris, France
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKiiu93YR2Q&ab_channel=OGGY
1997 - “Oliver Twist”, animation series, Background Designer, Studio Saban Int., Paris, France
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jgmqv8YywVQ
1997 - “Chapacan”, short film by Olias Barco, Scriptwriter, Canal+, Paris, France
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uDJg5YnV3Qs
1997 - “Hermes”, exhibition, 1st Assistant, scenography by Hilton Mac Connico, Paris, France
1998 - “Diabolik”, animation series, Background Designer, Studio Saban Int., Paris, France
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sr1GPHoBWWU
1998 - “Cuisine Chinoise”, short film by Frederique Feder, Art Director, Paris, France
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3m_PkTPwNcM
1998 - “Hermes”, exhibition, 1st Assistant to director Hilton Mac Connico, Paris, France
1998 - “Hope”, film by Hilton MacConnico, 1st Assistant, Claude Delon Production, Paris, France
2000 - “Les Fils de Rome”, animation series, Chief of Background, Studio Gaumont Int., Paris, France
2001 - “Père Noël est Sans Rancune”, animation Christmas tale, film by Jean Pierre Jaquet, Studio Dargaud-Marina, Paris, France
http://www.ina.fr/video/VDD13009447
2002 - “Tee-Bee”, animation series, development, Waaw Studio, Paris, France
2002 - “Pitt & Kantrop”, animation series by Xavier Giacometti, development, Studio Milleimage, Paris, France
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLiBKUbx16o
2002 - “Les Enfants du Feu”, animation series, Production Manager, Studio Millimage, Paris, France / Borisfen, Kyiv, Ukraine
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EittSDNT4yM
2002 - “Famille Carotte”, animation series, graphic and literary concept author, Dargaud-Marina, Paris, France
2003 - “King of Versailles”, animation series, graphic concept author, 2D/3D Animation Studio, Angoulême, France
2006 - “Test of America”, film by Yefim Gribov, Art Director, Kaviar Film, New York, USA
2011 - “Adremalinas”, Festival of Advertising, Jury Member, Vilnius, Lithuania
2012-2014 - Georgian Cinema Center, Jury Member, Tbilisi, Georgia

EXHIBITIONS

ONE MAN SHOWS
1994 - Black & White, Galerie Brischler, Paris
1995 - Animal, Galerie Europa, Paris
2003 - Painting, Galerie A Comme Art, Paris
2013 - Dog Portrait, Galerie Mila, Vieux Nice
2013 - Pyramides, Museum of Literature, Tbilisi
2015 - Patiachvili, Angel Art Gallery, Andorra La Vella, Andorra
2017 - Color Color, Galerie Marlier, Nice
2018 - Home Sweet Home, Gamrekeli Gallery, Tbilisi
2018 - Blowing, Savickas Gallery, Vilnius
2019 - Post History and the Hats, Vere Gallery, Tbilisi
2020 - Where Is Our Place, National Museum of Georgia, Tbilisi
2022 - Forms of Life, Katara Art Village, Doha, Qatar
2022 - Where Is Our Place, sculptural installation of homeless dogs, Vaso Godziashvili Park, Tbilisi, Georgia
2023 - We, Survivors, National Gallery of Georgia, Tbilisi
2025 - One Man Show, Heartgalerie, Paris
2025 - One Man Show, Exhibition Hall of Ambassadori, Kachreti, Georgia


GROUP EXHIBITIONS

1988 - Avant Garde of the 80s, Karvasla, Tbilisi
1989 - Red & White, Warsaw, Amsterdam, Bern, Berlin
1989 - Avant Garde of the 20th-80th, Moscovskaya Palitra, Moscow, Minsk
1989 - New Position, Tbilisi
1989 - Second Collection, Gallery Museum Mars, Moscow
1990 - Logic of the Paradox, Youth Palace, Moscow
1990 - New Figurations, Galerie Christine Colas, Paris
1990 - Furmanny in Factory, Kassel, Germany
1990 - Furmanny Artists, Limburg, Germany
1990 - Soviet Avant Garde, Museum of Buenos Aires, Argentina
1990 - Avant Garde, Malaya Gruzinskaya, Moscow, Russia
1991 - Two Men Show, Tchernikova-Patiachvili, The Hague, Netherlands
1991 - Moscow-Leningrad-Tbilisi, Angers, France
1993 - Renc’Art, Orleans, France
1994 - No! and the Conformists, Musée National de Warsaw
2000 - Intart, Upstate Museum, New York
2004 - Extraordinary Portraits, Galerie Mimi Fertz, New York
2008 - Georgian Art, Château de Poitiers
2009 - Private Collection, Espace Escofet-Miro, Paris
2010 - Artisterium, Tbilisi
2012 - Tales of Charles Perrault, Atelier Loire, Chartres, France
2013 - Art Moscow, Moscow
2014 - Typewriters and Other Wonders of the World, Galerie Kyria, Nice, France
2015 - Portraits, Espace Angelina Pisanu, Cannes, France
2016 - Entre les Lignes, La Galerie, Nice
2017 - Paysages Urbains, Cloître des Billettes, Paris
2017 - Post Human, Maison de France, Monaco
2018 - Lagidze Waters and Georgian Artists, National Gallery, Tbilisi
2018 - Field of Harmony and Agitation, Georgian Embassy, New York
2019 - Print Festival, MOMA Tbilisi
2019 - Anatomy of Existence, Art Tent Tbilisi
2020 - CovidArt, Galerie l’Entrepôt, Monaco
2020 - Ireal Reality, MOMA Tbilisi
2021 - La Force du Détail, Monaco
2021 - Back Stage, MOMA, Tbilisi, Georgia
2022 - Katara Art Festival, Doha, Qatar
2023 - What Is a Color of Europe, 9 Gallery, Tbilisi, Georgia
2023 - Self Portrait in Mirror, National Gallery, Tbilisi, Georgia
2024 - Behind, MOMA, Tbilisi, Georgia
2026 - Biennale of Venice, Georgian Pavilion, Venice

PUBLICATIONS

2010 - “Finger in the Bottle”, novel, ten stories, Moulin de P, Paris, Diogene Publishing
2012 - “Syndicat”, novel, Moulin de P, Paris, France
2013 - “Forty Days of Colonel”, novel, Moulin de P, Paris, Petrili Imprimeria, Ventimiglia, Italy
2014 - “Rotation Island”, novel, Moulin de P, Paris, Petrili Imprimeria, Ventimiglia, Italy
2018 - “Hats”, illustrated book, Moulin de P, Paris, Petrili Imprimeria, Ventimiglia, Italy
2020 - “Where Is Our Place”, exhibition book, Institut Français, Tbilisi, Georgia
2023 - “We, Survivors”, exhibition book, Tbilisi
2026 - “Glocken im Sturm”, Georgian Literature 1801-1940, author of cover, Leipzig, Germany