Conversation over coffee
with Leila Bakashvili and Eric Lund
When did you begin to draw?
It must have been very early in my life, because I can't even
remember a time when I didn't draw. I used any opportunity I had. Sometimes I even
got in trouble with my parents because they caught me drawing on things I shouldn't.
Were your parents happy that you took an interest
in drawing so early?
For the most part they were, because it became like a family pastime. However, they never
encouraged me to pursue drawing seriously. Like any loving and caring parents, they wanted
me to follow a more stable career track and become a doctor.
So is that why you decided to study medicine?
Yes, I patiently followed their advice
and for seven years studied medicine. But while studying at Tbilisi Medical University, I
took a course in graphic art offered by the Faculty of Arts and Humanities, and later
studied painting as a private student of Professor Robert Chocheli of the
Institute of Architecture of Georgian Technical University. So I received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree along with the
degree of Doctor of Medicine. I am greatly indebted to Professor Chocheli - a real
professional who was sincerely devoted to art. It is true that as a Renaissance expert he wasn't entirely supportive of my interest in impressionism, but he predicted a great
future for a new way of creating mosaics with colored paper that I developed.
So tell me a little bit about your art. What exactly is a paper mosaic and how did you develop an interest in impressionism?
The idea of the paper mosaic came to me spontaneously. The starting point for my new ideas is always color. Looking through magazines, I had a strong urge to "steal" the colors that were already there and use them to create my own paintings. Working on the mosaics is rather difficult, but very exciting. I spent two weeks completing my first mosaic, but I was satisfied with the result.
I like flowers; they give me an inexhaustible source of fantasy and variation of color. Painting flowers is like getting invaluable lessons in the understanding of color from nature itself.
Although I don't consider myself an impressionist, I believe that at the beginning of the twentieth century these artists were able to discern and reveal what has always been unconsciously assumed to be the most important aspect of painting - the special function of color. Their unique ability to improvise in the use of color opened the possibility of intensifying our perception of reality.
I don't consider that as an artist I have the right to be a teacher, philosopher, or programmer "coding" my paintings or inventing something sensational. I simply want to share my emotions, my delight in the miracle of each new day.
I'd like to add that every person is to a certain
degree an artist. All people feel and delight in beauty; what is sad is that the pressures
of everyday life don't always allow them to realize their ability to do so. If an artist
can help them - even just a little - the artist has achieved something wonderful.
Are the pressures of everyday life a sickness of our
time?
I don't think this is something relating only to our time. All periods of history have in their own way expressed this tension. The disharmony between the creative individual and materialistic society has always existed and the individual must be aware of this. Everyone has the opportunity to express their creativity in the work they do; they must simply maintain their perceptiveness and enthusiasm. Our capacity for creativity and spontaneity will determine how beautiful the future will be for us and our children.
And what do you think the future
of our children will be like?
It's clear that technological devices and physical comfort will not
be enough to make them happy. The ability to feel one's inner freedom and to love and
sympathize with other people is what I, as a mother, would like to pass on to them. Lao
Tzu formulated the secret of the eternity of existence in a very simple way: "Why are
the sky and the Earth eternal? Because they do not live for themselves."
Unfortunately, while we teach children about "rights" and how to lead a
comfortable life we often fail to tell them about sacrificing their personal interests for
the sake of others.
On the cover of your portfolio is the flag of a Georgian kingdom of the Middle Ages, and I know that one of your works is in the collection of a present-day monarch. Do you have some connection to royalty?
As for the flag, it is the flag of the King David of Georgia, a man who brought the Georgian state back from the brink of ruin and created a unique harmony within Georgian society. This was for Georgia a time of spiritual and cultural resurgence. As This great man approached his death, he asked not for honor or glory, but rather that he be buried underneath the entrance to a church so that all the people who entered the church would be able to step on his grave. Since I don't have any experience of living in a monarchy, let me once again express my thoughts through the words of Lao Tzu: "In the past, those who reigned were righteous and omniscient." I think these words very much characterize King David.
As for my mosaic, which is now in the collection of the King of Monaco, Rainier III, it was originally bought by a descendant of one of the most well-respected families of the Russian Empire (who asked to remain anonymous). He later presented it to the King of Monaco as a sign of thanks for the hospitality shown to a member of his family who emigrated from Russia shortly after the Revolution of 1917. All I know about the aristocrat who emigrated is that he was an artist and his wife was a famous Russian ballerina. I'm very happy to have received a copy of the king's thank-you letter. And I was even happier to learn that Rainier's wife, Princess Grace, was originally from Philadelphia. You know, I have very warm feelings for this city, and I feel like it is my "home city" in America.
Do you miss your real "home
city", Tbilisi?
I have a very deep love for Tbilisi, but I'll answer this question
with a short poem written by my fourteen-year-old daughter:
A place I call home
is not a place where I live,
A place I call home
is not a place where I rest,
A place I call home
is a place where I keep my secrets,
where I keep my dreams,
It is in my heart, right inside of me.
Leila, I wish you success in your artistic endeavors. The best of luck to you!