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Arts By Thea

Thea Mamukelashvili

Georgian-American Artist

I am a self-taught artist who paints with both brush and needle. I view embroidery as a form of painting: I "paint" with needle and threads using a freestyle technique I developed myself. In my work, I incorporate my painting skills with fabrics and threads - natural silk and cotton, handmade felt, and silver and gold metallic threads. I often draw from Georgian ornamental motifs and historical heraldry, turning them into contemporary textile artworks.

I have embroidered since I was five and began painting in 2017.

Since 2010 my family and I live in Ohio.

My primary media are oil and acrylic paints on canvas, often combined with silk and handmade felt. For my thread work I use silk and cotton threads as well as gold and silver metallic threads. I work with a freestyle embroidery approach - I don't follow standard stitching patterns but compose intuitively from imagination, and I occasionally incorporate Georgian ornamental motifs and heraldic elements. Small pieces can take me a few days, while larger and more detailed embroideries may require several weeks.

Art Shows and Activities

  • 2000 — Personal show, Tbilisi USAID (Sheraton-Metekhi Palace).

  • 2001 — Member, Georgian National Culture Center.

  • 2001 — Personal show at the National Library (Parliament of Georgia) — 30 embroidered Georgian noble coats-of-arms exhibited.

  • 2001 — Personal art show at Tbilisi State University Exhibition Hall (supported by the History Department).

  • 2002 — Personal embroidery show, Tbilisi State Academy of Fine Arts Exhibition Hall.

  • 2003 — 15 embroidery works exhibited in Auxerre, France (Cultural Exchange Program).

  • 2003 — Personal embroidery show, Lado Gudiashvili Batumi Exhibition Hall.

  • 2005 — Member, Painters Federation of Georgia.

  • 2006–2010 — Teacher of embroidery & folk arts, World Vision Georgia.

  • 2008–2009 — Embroidery teacher, “Alter Ego,” Telavi, Georgia.

  • 2012–2013 — Member, Cincinnati Queen City Art Club.

  • 2023 — Member, Woman’s Art Club of Cincinnati.

  • 2010–2025 — Seamstress at the Magic Needle Alterations.

  • 2025–Present — Owner of Stitch & Style Alterations, based in Loveland, Ohio.

Oil and Acrylic Paintings

Handmade Embroidery Art

Embroidered Coat of Arms

Thea Mamukelashvili - 2025

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