I was born in Tbilisi when Georgia was still a Soviet republic, and immigrated to the United States in 1992. I have lived and worked in Baltimore, Paris, Australia, Italy, Ireland, London, and Tbilisi again.

Photography has been the centre of the work since I was given a camera as a child. I also draw and paint. I use gouache, charcoal, ink, and gold and write Georgian text into the surface. I have also worked with stereoscopy and other optical methods so that a flat sheet can hold depth.

The work now is the Italian courtyards of Tbilisi: layered wooden galleries, shared gates, laundry, brick. What is disappearing is not only buildings. It is a way of living. The letters on the surface are not decoration. They keep visible what was meant to recede.

I hold an MFA in Imaging and Digital Arts from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Work is in the permanent collections of the Library of Congress and the Kiyosato Museum of Photographic Arts. My photographs and stereoscopic work have received awards in the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Georgia, and have been shown with the London Stereoscopic Company. I have taught in the United States, France, and the United Kingdom and currently live and work in Tbilisi.

All images, content and concepts are copyright of Nino Trentinella. All rights reserved.