Bio

Temo Svirely was born in 1964 in Tskhinvali, Georgia (at the time, Georgian SSR within the USSR). His birth name was Tengiz Tskhovrebov, the last name being an adaptation of Georgian Tskhovrebashvili, which translates as “child of life”. Temo spent much of his childhood in nature, in the village of Sviri in Western Georgia. These memories, full of primordial and genuine joy, later gave rise to his art name: Svirely, “the one from Sviri”. 

Temo’s father, a legendary soccer player, traveled around the world for work, which was impossible for most people in the authoritarian and isolated Soviet Union. He returned from overseas with gifts: postcards, art history books, pencils, painting supplies, and monographs of great European artists. Like that, Temo fell in love with van Gogh. To little Temo, the Western world had so much to offer and felt misleadingly reachable.

By the age of 10, he was already painting in oil and had met his school art teacher who became a friend, a mentor, and a formative figure. At that time Temo realized he wanted to be an artist. In 1983, he graduated from the M.S. Tuganov Art School in Tskhinvali and joined the army as a cryptographer for two years of mandatory military service.

After the army, Temo started preparing for the entrance exams to the Tbilisi State Academy of Arts, learning from prominent Tbilisi painters and art teachers, and working at the Academy as a night shift security guard to make a living. The Iron Curtain was slowly falling, bringing a breath of fresh air. Collections of impressionist, post-impressionist, and French contemporary art made it to Tbilisi. For the first time, he got to see the originals of his beloved van Gogh. The impressionists, especially Claude Monet, impacted him on a very profound level. The Georgian anti-Soviet movement was growing strong, and Temo actively participated, organizing and attending rallies for Georgian independence. In 1989, came the acceptance letter from the Academy of Arts. The future seemed exciting and bright.

On April 9^th 1989, the day that is now known as the Tbilisi Massacre, Soviet special forces attacked a Georgian independence rally, resulting in the death of 21 peaceful protesters and injuring hundreds more. Temo’s recollection of that day is captured in the short film "Touch the Air". On the 2-year anniversary of the tragedy, Georgia declared independence from the USSR. Russia, in attempts to seize control through destabilization, heavily backed separatist movements in the Abkhazia and South Ossetia regions of Georgia. Externally fueled conflicts led to the South Ossetian War, and later to the War in Abkhazia and Georgian Civil War. 

Temo, who believed in a united and independent Georgia, was heartbroken. In one of his later interviews he said: “Soon the events occurred that changed the lives and destinies of many people. In its struggle for independence, Georgia lost many of its best sons and daughters. Then came the civil war. It was precisely these events, the disappointments endured, the human pain, that led to the appearance of the portrait in my work. The painting "Puddle in the Old Town" perhaps best conveyed the mood of that time: warmth, sadness, and sorrow.”

Temo remained politically active, advocating for reconciliation and unity. The quickly rising tensions deemed further artistic pursuit impossible. In 1991 he left Georgia without finishing his studies and moved to Kharkiv, Ukraine.

One of the Kharkiv galleries started selling his artwork. Later that year, he moved to Moscow, living in a cheap hotel with other Georgian artists, painting a lot, and selling his paintings on the streets of downtown. His “studio” was set up in the hotel’s out-of-service washroom. The 1989-1992 period of the artist’s work remained undocumented. He would either sell the paintings right away or leave them behind wherever they were painted, as there was nowhere to store them.

Temo had his first three exhibits (one in Kyiv and two in Moscow), and was preparing for his fourth when the 1993 Russian Constitutional Crisis unfolded. Ethnic profiling and discrimination against Georgians and other people of the Caucasus were already widespread, but quickly intensified and became encouraged by the authorities. He later recalled: “There was gunfire in the city. A curfew was imposed. Searches and arrests began in the hotels and dormitories where Georgian artists were living. Under such conditions it was impossible to continue working: I finished the painting "Man and Woman" in the presence of armed to the teeth OMON special police.”. The same night he was on a one-way train to Kyiv. 

In Kyiv, he met Iryna, his future wife and life partner. She too was excited about the new world of knowledge and opportunity that came with the fall of the Soviet censor state. Together, they started studying Tibetan Buddhist teachings and practicing meditation; Temo had found his spiritual path. 

Kyiv became home, a perfect place for conscious work and reflection. 1996 marked Temo’s first trip outside of the post-Soviet space: he was invited to exhibit in Trier, Germany. The Western world of art that he dreamt of since he was little was opening up to him. He began visiting the best galleries and museums in the world, learning from the works of his favourite classical and contemporary artists. Throughout his 20 years in Kyiv, Temo took part in over 50 exhibitions across 12 countries in Europe and North America; 18 of these were large-scale solo projects. 

The theme of war and struggle for freedom remained in Temo’s work. In 2003, he joined the "Invasio" project opposing the Russian invasion of Chechnya. In 2004, alongside Ukrainian artists, he participated in the Orange Revolution, a series of protests that erupted after a pro-Russian party poisoned the opposition leader and attempted to skew the results of the Ukrainian presidential election. 2008 brought more pain and sorrow when Russia invaded Georgia. In 2014, he took part in the Ukrainian Revolution of Dignity, engaging in demonstrations against a violent pro-Russian regime and documenting these history-shaping events which prefaced the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

In the winter of 2014 Temo was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer which quickly progressed despite a successful surgery. He passed away in his home 7 months later, at the age of 50, surrounded by people he loved. He reflected on his life path in an open letter written months before his passing.