Chachba-Shervashidze Alexander

First professional Abkhaz artist; graphic artist, painter, designer, art historian and art critic - December 24 1867-12 August 1968 The prince, grandson of the ruler of the Abkhazian principality Keleshbei Chachba, , the Prince of Abkhazia (1918-1968), brother of Vladimir Shervashidze. The first professional artist among Abkhazians; graphic artist, painter, set designer, art critic .He was born in Feodosia (Tavria province). He studied at the Kiev school (1886-1889), where he became interested in painting. Volunteer at the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture of Polenov (1891-1893). From 1885 he studied in Paris. Member of the exhibition of works of Russian artists in Paris (1906). He was a member of the Paris Russian artistic circle "Montparnasse". Alexander Shervashidze was formed as an artist on the basis of Russian realist art school and in-depth study of European culture in France. At the beginning of the XX century (1907-1918), he was one of the most famous set designers Petersburg imperial theaters - the Mariinsky and Alexandrinsky. He worked on an equal footing with such outstanding Russian artists as Alexander Benois, Golovin, Valentin Serov, N. Roerich and foreign masters Pablo Picasso, A. Derain. In 1918-1919 lived in Sukhum, where he opened a children's art school, where he was giving drawing lessons. For some time lived in the Crimea, Koktebel. Here he received an invitation from Diaghilev set designer to work in the "Russian ballet", which at that time was in London. From now on, his fate was linked with the "Russian ballet" where he worked from 1920 to 1948. His activities abroad referred to in the "Dictionary of Modern Ballet" (Paris, 1957.Beying far from the homeland, the artist was interested in the life of his country, its cultural achievements. In 1958, Alexander Shervashidze, despite the fact that the needed material, refused to sell their work, and sent them as a gift to their Motherland (about 500 pieces). The artist died on August 17, 1968, at the 101 year of life at the guesthouse for the elderly in Monaco and was buried in Nice in Russian cemetery. Only on May 12, 1985 in the capital of Sukhum, in a solemn ceremony held at the National Museum of the reburial of the dust of the Abkhaz artist.