Another week, and another great exhibition opened in the National Georgian Museum on November 18, giving us another brilliant Georgian artist to discover.
“We at BI Auction want to introduce Oleg Timchenko. If you have yet to meet him or his artworks, know that once you do, you will undoubtedly fall in love with his style,” says BI Auction Co-Founder & Partner Bengu Akcardak Kucuk.
Born in 1957, Oleg Timchenko graduated from the Tbilisi Academy of Art in 1982. He works as an artist and professor in the Academy of Art, having had multiple personal and group exhibitions in Europe and America.
Tell us about your work and influences.
I am a painter but I have worked in different genres, including photo art, installations and performance art. At different times I have been influenced by different movements and artists, including Marc Chagall, trans-avant garde artists, the expressionists of the KG Brücke Group, performance artist Joseph Beuys, pop artists Andy Warhol, abstract expressionist artists Willem de Kooning and Franz Kline.
Name one artwork everyone should see with their own eyes.
All works should be seen with your own eyes. But since you ask for just one, I would choose the Sistine Chapel painted in fresco by Michelangelo.
What is your attitude to the developing virtual space for art?
The virtual space will never replace museums and the act of seeing original works. From the point of view of art promotion and sales, one can make good use of the virtual space. However, it can be deceiving – good works can lose out and poor works can win.
Where do you see your place in Georgian art?
I assign for myself the same place in Georgian art as other artists. Judgements will be made with time.
What changes do you see in Georgian art?
Georgian art, as elsewhere in the world, is influenced by the advancement of technology. With the use of computer graphics and special effects, more prominence is being given to forms and less to content, ideas and concepts.
What are your hopes for Georgian art and artists?
I wish Georgian art to remain art. And I wish Georgian artists good exhibitions and appreciative audiences!
