In the Eye of the Beholder
Mamuka Dideba, The Fig Eater, oil and glazing on canvas, private collection
Umberto Eco posits beauty in the eye of the beholder whose ideals of beauty change depending on historical and social perspective. Dideba posits it within the very character of the sitter, shaped by their chosen profession, finding in imperfect proportions the beauty of a life in the process of being lived.
Mamuka Dideba’s home is Georgia, a land of rich history, natural beauty and endless inspiration that lends itself so naturally and frequently to artistic mastery.
Mamuka Dideba, Old Warrior, 2018, oil and glazing on canvas, 82 x 59cm, author’s private collection
By altering the figure away from classical proportions, Dideba highlights the essential character of his imaginary sitter with a gentle dignity.
His nuanced characters seem to walk off the canvas while remaining fixed in their own world, at an indeterminate time and place. He completes a painting only when he senses the figure is alive, as if about to start a conversation. You can almost touch the creases of the Old Warrior’s face or the smooth skin of his body, surprisingly childlike and vulnerable by contrast to his weather-worn and battle-weary face (see above).
Channeling different experiences and aspects of our own multifaceted natures, all of his characters have one irresistible thing in common: no matter whether serious, playful or surreal, they are kind.
Mamuka Dideba, Harlequin, 2015, oil and glazing on canvas, 104 x 64cm, Katrine Levin Galleries
Inspired by the Old Masters and dubbed "Georgia's Bruegel" because of his deviation from realistic proportions and his interest in human behaviour, Dideba brings joy through a unique expression of the wonder, the subtle humour, and the warm and often surreal philosophical outlook that is quintessentially Georgian.
Painting in exquisite Renaissance-era imprimatura technique that appears to light the canvas from within and requires great skill and patience to master, Dideba is inspired also by abstraction. The whimsical background and clothing of the characters in his figurative works incorporate elements of his abstract paintings, acting as an unconscious bridge between the genres. (See Journey into Light highlighting the Autumn Prelude series of abstractions)
For Mamuka Dideba’s biography and other works, click here
For a PDF catalogue with a wonderful introduction to his work by Irene Kukota click here
For queries, please email me at katrine@katrinelevin.com or DM me on FB/IG.
COOL FACT
While studying at the Tbilisi State Art Academy at a time when Georgia was still annexed by the former Soviet Union, Dideba was drafted and served with the elite airborne Special Forces unit doing rescue missions in Afghanistan. He is incredible in that having survived the ordeal, he retained the light in his heart.
[IMAGE: Mamuka Dideba, Triumphant, 2014, oil and glazing on canvas, 104 x 56cm, Katrine Levin Galleries]