Biography

Yuri Mechitov, photographer, lives in Georgia, Tbilisi 
Born in Tbilisi, Georgia May 10, 1950
Graduated from Georgian Polytechnic Institute in 1972, mining engineer
Takes photographs from childhood
Author of several film documentaries, also performed roles in several feature films
First photo exhibition – April 1979 cinema House Tbilisi
Author of more than 90 photo exhibition worldwide
Worked for many years as a stills photographer for “Georgia Film Studio”
Worked with famous film director Sergei Parajanov - 1978 – 1990
Worked as a photo editor for “Mtavari Gazeti” newspaper, 2002 – 2004
Participated in the World Bank photo projects 2003 - 2005
Works for cinema, theatre, advertising, magazines, books
But believes that he is mainly a portrait photographer
Delivered lectures on photography in different institutions in Tbilisi
Co-founder and lecturer of photo school at “Mechitov – Deisadze workshop”
Author of book “Sergei Parajanov-Chronicles of a Dialogue” published 2009
Author of album “101 portraits by Yuri Mechitov” published 2010
Co-author of album “The History of Georgian Photography” published 2013
Author of book “Sergei Parajanov” on Russian, English, French languages published 2014
Author of the book “Georgia Double Pages” published in 2018
Author of erotic book “Under Wraps” not published yet
Author of several literary works
Working languages –Georgian, English, Russian
Hobbies - politics, music, philosophy, ethno psychology.

Thousands of my negatives are waiting for their hour. Sometimes I think not to shoot more, but dig up archives. I switched to digital photography 10 years ago, so those three years are more visible. I have to scan all valuable negatives in order to create my whole photo-story.

My name is Yuri Mechitov.

I was born on May, 10, 1950 in Tbilisi, Georgia.

I began to shoot photographs when I was 8 years old. But I started to think about photography seriously much later.

My first exhibition was displayed in 1979 in Tbilisi. I started to work mainly in documentary genre, now I find I like to shoot people, I was happy to get into the art-world. It happened occasionally, but I believe that it was as it should be.

My guides were three very different persons -an artist Mark Polyakov, who lives and works in NYC now, film-director Sergey Parajanov, who rests in peace in Yerevan, Armenia and Vladimir Pichkhadze, alas also buried in Tbilisi. They made all their best for me, for I could understand, evaluate and then to create art myself.

I held up to 20 solo and up to 50 group exhibitions in Georgia and other countries.

The book about Sergey Parajanov "The Chronicle of a Dialogue" is published.

I also dream to publish my erotic photographs. I began to shoot them in 1998. In 1999 I had act exhibition "Under wraps" named in honor of my favorite rock group "Jethro Tull"

About me

Thousands of my negatives are waiting for their hour. Sometimes I think not to shoot more, but dig up archives. I have to scan all valuable negatives in order to create my whole photo-story.

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