YASHAREL MANZY BIO
Yasharel Manzy was born in 1947 in the ancient Jewish ghetto of Esfahan,Iran. He immigrated to the United States at the age of twenty-one. After twenty years of doing many different types of work, Yasharel was overwhelmed by the need for artistic expression, and finally at the age of forty, he abandoned his last business to devote himself to painting. He began traveling extensively and was especially taken with the landscapes of southern France and Italy's Tuscany area. These dramatic vistas became his muse and from time to time he is drawn back to revisit them.
Yasharel is primarily a self-taught intuitive painter who gains inspiration from both the world around him and his deep love of classical music. His paintings touch upon the emotional core that we each hold within us.
Artist's Statement
When I was six years old I tried to copy one of Raphael's drawings. The result of the drawing gave me such exaltation that I could not sleep that night. I could not wait until I showed the drawing to my teacher the next day. My very first experience in painting was at the age of thirteen during the summer vacation. I would spend long afternoons doing watercolors. The subject matter was mostly the scenes of the city. I attempted to paint again at the age of thirty-three. Then to my dislike due to the quality of the paintings and my lack of experience, I abandoned painting once again. I suppose due to the lack of patience I always wanted to be able to paint without going through the pain of schools and learning.
Then came the winter of 1990. While strolling through a gallery a painting with a French scene caught my attention. There I was glued to the floor and frozen. A few moments later this incredible feeling overwhelmed me. I found myself in the crossroads of my life, and I knew there was no turning back. At that time, I was a partner in business in Atlanta. To be able to change my banal way of life and go where my heart was that afternoon I decided to change my ways and to become a painter. Now it is very clear that I almost had no part in the transformation that was taking place that day.
The following day I changed my office from a place of business into a studio. For the first time in twenty years I could not wait to get to work so I could paint. I did learn through books and frequenting great museums of the world. I painted at least eight hours a day for the next six years. Then I was capable of standing alone, and I became a full-time painter.
SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2018 B. Deemer Gallery, Louisville, KY
2015 TEW Galleries, Atlanta, GA
2014 TEW Galleries, Atlanta, GA
2014 Allison Sprock Fine Art, Charlotte, NC
2013 TEW Galleries, Atlanta, GA
2013 Left Bank Gallery, St. Simons Island, GA
2012 TEW Galleries, Atlanta, GA
2010 TEW Galleries, Atlanta, GA
2010 Yasharel Manzy Studio, Atlanta, GA. to benefit The Stumpe Foundation
2009 TEW Galleries, Atlanta, GA to benefit the Atlanta Humane Society
2008 TEW Galleries, Atlanta, GA
2007 TEW Galleries, Atlanta, GA
2006 TEW Galleries, Atlanta, GA
2006 Beverly McNeil Gallery, Birmingham, AL
2006 Left Bank Art Gallery, St. Simons Island, GA
2005 TEW Galleries, Atlanta, GA
2005 Left Bank Art Gallery, St. Simons Island, GA
2004 Bennett Street Gallery, Atlanta, GA
2004 Meghan Candler Gallery, Vero Beach, FL
2003 Bennett Street Gallery, Atlanta, GA
2003 Left Bank Art Gallery, St. Simons Island, GA
2003 Gallery 1401, Chattanooga, TN
2003 Beverly McNeil Gallery, Destin, FL
2002 Bennett Street Gallery, Atlanta, GA
2002 Stellers Gallery, Jacksonville, FL
2002 Left Bank Art Gallery, St. Simons Island, GA
2002 Jules Place, Boston, MS
2001 Bennett Street Gallery, Atlanta, GA
2001 Martha Lincoln Gallery, Vero Beach, FL
2001 Lyons View Gallery, Knoxville, TN
2000 Bennett Street Gallery, Atlanta, GA
2000 Stellers Gallery, Ponte Vedra Beach, FL
2000 Left Bank Art Gallery, St. Simons Island, GA
1999 Bennett Street Gallery, Atlanta, GA
1999 Left Bank Art Gallery, St. Simons Island, GA
1998 Alliance Francaise, Atlanta, GA
1998 Bennett Street Gallery, Atlanta, GA
1998 Left Bank Art Gallery, St. Simons Island, GA
1997 Stellers Gallery, Jacksonville, FL
1997 Left Bank Art Gallery, St. Simons Island, GA
1996 Left Bank Art Gallery, St. Simons Island, GA
1996 Alliance Francaise, Atlanta, GA
1993 Rosemont Galleries, Wilmington, NC
1991 Arts Connection, Atlanta, GA
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2017 Huntsville Museum of Fine Art, Huntsville, AL
2016 TEW Galleries, Atlanta, GA Two Person Exhibition
2016 Huntsville Museum of Fine Art, Huntsville, AL
2015 Huntsville Museum of Fine Art, Huntsville, AL
2015 Landscape Show - TEW Galleries, Atlanta, GA
2014 Landscape Show - TEW Galleries, Atlanta, GA
2014 Abstract Show - TEW Galleries, Atlanta, GA
2014 Huntsville Museum of Fine Art, Huntsville, AL
2014 Swan Coach House, Atlanta, GA
2013 Pryor Fine Art, Atlanta, GA
2013 Huntsville Museum of Fine Art, Huntsville, AL
2012 Guinlan Visual Arts Center, Gainesville, GA
2012 Huntsville Museum of Art, Huntsville, AL
2011 Huntsville Museum of Art, Huntsville, AL
2010 Huntsville Museum of Art, Huntsville, AL
2009 Small Works - TEW Galleries, Atlanta, GA
2009 Huntsville Museum of Art, Huntsville, AL
2009 Swan Coach House, Atlanta, GA
2009 Small Works - Meghan Candler Gallery, Vero Beach, FL
2008 Huntsville Museum of Fine Art, Huntsville, AL Two Person Exhibition
2008 Meghan Candler Fine Art, Vero Beach, FL Two Person Exhibition
2008 Meghan Candler Gallery, Vero Beach, FL
2008 Huntsville Museum of Fine Art, Huntsville, AL
2007 20th Anniversary - TEW Galleries, Atlanta, GA
2007 Huntsville Museum of Fine Art, Huntsville, GA
2006 Holiday Small Works - TEW Galleries, Atlanta, GA
2005 TEW Galleries, Atlanta, GA
2000 Alliance Francaise, Atlanta, GA
