(born Niko Pirosmanashvili; May 5, 1862-1918) was a Georgian primitivist painter. Pirosmani was born in the Georgian village of Mirzaani to a pleasant family in the Kakheti province. His family owned a small vineyard. He was later orphaned and put in the care of his two elder sisters. He moved with them to Tbilisi in 1870. In 1872 he worked as a servant for wealthy families and learned to read and write Russian and Georgian. In 1876 he returned to Mirzaani and worked as a herdsman. Pirosmani gradually taught himself to paint. One of his specialties was painting directly into black oilcloth. In 1882 he opened a workshop in Tbilisi which was unsuccessful. In 1890 he worked as a railroad conductor, and in 1895 worked creating signboards. In 1893 he co-founded a dairy farm in Tbilisi which he left in 1901. Throughout his life Pirosmani, who was always poor, was willing to take up ordinary jobs including housepainting and whitewashing buildings. Although his paintings had some local popularity (about 200 survive) his relationship with professional artists remained uneasy; making a living was always more important to him than abstract aesthetics.  Related Paintings of Niko Pirosmanashvili :. | A Sitting Yellow Lion | Brooder with Chicks | Organ-Grinder | Kakhetian Epos - Alasan Valley | Autumn Feast |
Related Artists:
claude vignon
Claude Vignon (19 May 1593 - 10 May 1670) was a leading French painter and engraver working in the Baroque manner. He was born at Tours and received early training in Paris. About 1610 he travelled to Rome where his mature style was formed in the circle of French painters there that included Simon Vouet and Valentin de Boulogne, a prominent member of the Caravaggisti working, like Bartolomeo Manfredi, in the manner established by Caravaggio. He returned from Italy, after a tour in Spain, in 1623. His paintings are represented in most of the major museums.
Johannes Adam Oertel
German, 1823-1909
Frank Vizetelly
1830-1883