Guram Sutidze

Enameller | Tbilisi, Georgia

A passion for colour and fire

Guram's practice is heavily influences by Georgian folk aesthetics
His motifs include archaic symbols, religious scenes and everyday stories
He uses traditional jewellery making techniques on silver and copper

Guram Sutidze grew up surrounded by Georgian art, which shaped the intuitive sense of composition he carries in his enamelling. He studied architecture at Tbilisi State Academy of Arts, where he encountered the newly revived tradition of enamel and trained in a workshop alongside his studies. "The years I spent as a professional rugby player have strengthened the patience and steadiness I apply to this precise craft," Guram says. Today, he begins each piece with a hand drawn sketch before moving to metal and fire. Guram creates enamel jewellery and small compositions marked by simple lines, folkloric themes and the deep colours familiar to Georgian decorative arts.

Interview

©Giorgi Induashvili

How did you start enamelling?: The first time I saw enamel, it captured me. As a child, I could only admire it in museums because workshops did not yet exist, and the technique was only just reappearing. When I got into the Tbilisi State Academy of Arts, I was finally able to study it, and I have enjoyed it ever since.
What defines your process?: My work always begins with a sketch, which is where I search for the idea and the feeling of the piece. I use traditional jewellery making techniques on silver or copper. Even though my motifs come from many different sources, they naturally take on my own vision.
Where do your motifs come from?: My motifs come from what I read, see and remember, including Georgian folk aesthetics, carpet colours, archaic symbols, religious scenes and everyday stories. Each piece becomes an intimate narrative shaped by the meditative rhythm of enamel making.
What should people know about enamel?: Enamel is glass fused to metal through fire, a process that transforms in just seconds. Once reserved for the privileged, the craft nearly disappeared before its revival. What people should know is that enamel demands careful preparation, steady precision and great respect for the material.

Guram Sutidze is an expert artisan: he began his career in 2000