From
the painting that (at the time) commanded the top price paid for a
work by this emerging genius. During an early yet prestigious Beverly
Hills exhibit where most paintings carried prices between $10,000
and $15,000, this painting sold for a record $19,000.
About the
Artist: Beso
Beso Kazaishvili was born on February 10, 1986
in Kutaisi (Koo-tay-see), the second largest city in the Republic
of Georgia. He is the second of five children born to father, Badri,
and mother, Irma. He, his older brother and three younger sisters
all survived the bloody civil war that ravaged their country and robbed
them of their childhood.
One
evening, in the winter of 1992, during a particularly fierce night
of fighting, having previously shown no proclivities towards art,
Beso was visited by "four points of light" that left him
numb and in a state of shock. When he awoke the next morning, he began
to create magnificent and beautiful paintings and drawings.
While
touring Kutaisi, the Georgian Ambassador to Great Britain saw Beso's
work on display at a local bank and immediately arranged for Beso
to have an exhibit at a prestigious gallery in London. The show was
an overwhelming success. Every one of Beso's paintings sold out on
opening night. The European media came out in full force to celebrate
this rarest of artists . . . a visual arts prodigy. He was proclaimed
a genius and soon his popularity spread all across Europe.
Televisions
and film producer, Rick Lombardo, was working on a documentary on
child prodigies in the visual arts when he saw one of the many news
reports on Beso. He promptly called Ben Valenty, the man responsible
for discovering and building the career of another incredible child
prodigy, Alexandra Nechita. After visiting Beso in London, the two
men signed the young artist to an exclusive publishing agreement.
Requests
for media interviews have been overwhelming and, already, a major
television documentary of Beso, his art and his journey to the Festival
of Peace is being shot. Support for the festival of peace from world
leaders so far has been near-total. Over the next few months, young
Beso will be visiting perhaps as many as forty countries in order
to present each nation's heads-of-state with their painting.
