Alexander Roinashvili

Alexander Roinashvili
ალექსანდრე როინაშვილი
Alexander Roinashvili in 1898
Born1846
Dusheti, Dusheti uezd, Russian Empire
Died1898
Tiflis, Russian Empire
Other namesAlexander Solomonovich Roinov (Russified name)
OccupationPhotographer

Alexander Roinashvili (Georgian: ალექსანდრე როინაშვილი; also known by his Russified name, Alexander Solomonovich Roinov, Russian: Александр Соломонович Роинов) (1846 – 1898) was the first Georgian photographer.[1][2] He is known for his photos of the Caucasian landscapes and portraits of contemporary Georgian intellectuals.

Photograph of Ilia Chavchavadze by Alexander Roinashvili

Born in the mountainous community of Dusheti, east Georgia, then part of the Russian Empire, Roinashvili took photographic classes at the Khlamov studio in Tiflis. He began his career as a photographer in Tiflis in 1865 and soon set up his own studio. Closely associated with the Georgian national movement, he was involved in documenting cultural heritage in Georgia and organized a mobile museum of photography which toured across the Caucasus and Russia proper.[3]

  1. ^ Hannavy, John (2008), Encyclopedia of Nineteenth-century Photography, p. 494. CRC Press, ISBN 0-415-97235-3.
  2. ^ Gersamia, Giorgi. Alexander Roinashvili. The Georgian Museum of Photography. Retrieved on 2008-12-28
  3. ^ Henisch, Heinz K. & Henisch, Bridget Ann (1994), The Photographic Experience, 1839-1914, pp. 348-9. Penn State Press, ISBN 0-271-00930-6.