Georgi Danevski (born 25 July 1947) is a Canadian Macedonian painter, iconographer and muralist. He was born in

Yugoslav Macedonia The Socialist Republic of Macedonia ( mk, Социјалистичка Република Македонија, Socijalistička Republika Makedonija), or SR Macedonia, commonly referred to as Socialist Macedonia or Yugoslav Macedonia, was ...

, before spending a number of years traveling and becoming known throughout

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

and

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

for his

murals A mural is any piece of graphic artwork that is painted or applied directly to a wall, ceiling or other permanent substrate. Mural techniques include fresco, mosaic, graffiti and marouflage. Word mural in art The word ''mural'' is a Spanish ...

and

canvas Canvas is an extremely durable plain-woven fabric used for making sails, tents, marquees, backpacks, shelters, as a support for oil painting and for other items for which sturdiness is required, as well as in such fashion objects as handbags ...

art. He designed and painted a large

mural A mural is any piece of graphic artwork that is painted or applied directly to a wall, ceiling or other permanent substrate. Mural techniques include fresco, mosaic, graffiti and marouflage. Word mural in art The word ''mural'' is a Spani ...

at St. Dimitrija Solunski Macedonian Orthodox Church, Markham, Ontario and other churches. He was also commissioned to paint a portrait of

Frank Stronach Frank Stronach (born 6 September 1932) is an Austrian and Canadian businessman and politician. He is the founder of Magna International, an international automotive parts company based in Aurora, Ontario, Canada, Granite Real Estate, and The ...

, the founder of Magna International, Moses Znaimer and also a painting of the Canadian Triple Crown racehorse Wando.

Early life

Danveski was born in

Saramzalino Saramzalino ( mk, Сарамзалино) is a village in the municipality of Lozovo, North Macedonia. Demographics According to the 2002 census, the village had a total of 118 inhabitants. Ethnic groups in the village include:Macedonian Census ( ...

, then in

SFR Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as SFR Yugoslavia or simply as Yugoslavia, was a country in Central and Southeast Europe. It emerged in 1945, following World War II, and lasted until 1992, with the breakup of Yug ...

on 25 July 1947. He grew up in

SR Macedonia The Socialist Republic of Macedonia ( mk, Социјалистичка Република Македонија, Socijalistička Republika Makedonija), or SR Macedonia, commonly referred to as Socialist Macedonia or Yugoslav Macedonia, was ...

, where he was adopted at the age of 4 by his uncle. His adopted father played an early role in shaping Danevski into a young artist. He regularly attended a

Macedonian Orthodox Church The Macedonian Orthodox Church – Archdiocese of Ohrid (MOC-AO; mk, Македонска православна црква – Охридска архиепископија), or simply the Macedonian Orthodox Church (MOC) or the Archdiocese o ...

in Berovo with his grandmother, where he became fascinated by its décor. The

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * Chris ...

, situated in an

archaeological Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...

town, features some of the earliest

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

icons and frescoes that date back centuries. He pursued his passion for art throughout his education. He married at a young age and settled in Vinica. He specialized in art in High School in

Skopje Skopje ( , , ; mk, Скопје ; sq, Shkup) is the capital and largest city of North Macedonia. It is the country's political, cultural, economic, and academic centre. The territory of Skopje has been inhabited since at least 4000 BC; r ...

and later completed his education in 1972 after graduating with a master's degree from the University of Ljubljana where he was mentored by Gabriel Stupica and Zoran Didek. Following his graduation, he spent a number of years travelling between various countries and cities, including

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

and

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, before emigrating to

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, Canada in 1995.

Works

Danevski is best known for his muralist works in Churches. His life as an artist changed dramatically when he was approached by two Canadian Macedonians to move to

. The reason behind the move was to carry out a large project, where he would adorn the first

North American North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Ca ...

Macedonian Church, St. Clement of Ohrid Macedonian Orthodox Cathedral in

, which features his

fresco Fresco (plural ''frescos'' or ''frescoes'') is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaste ...

. Danevski was featured in the

Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and part ...

in 2007 after he began painting unique

-style

frescos Fresco (plural ''frescos'' or ''frescoes'') is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaste ...

and iconography throughout the St. Dimitrija Solunski Macedonian Orthodox Church, Markham, Ontario in Canada. He worked on the

for a number of years and it was quoted by the

that once completed it could be the largest

of its kind in

. The

is 600 square meters in size, was completed in 2010 and took an estimated 5 years to complete. The completed

contains over 1000 icons and composite murals depicting Christian history.

Work on Canvas

Danevski's work is best known throughout

, where he made his mark initially. He has created a number of expressions, which led to him having a broad and steady demand from private collectors, museums and galleries. Much of the demand for his work comes from

and also

. His work has been exhibited at a number of exhibitions, including the "Chamber Exhibition",

Parliament of Canada The Parliament of Canada (french: Parlement du Canada) is the federal legislature of Canada, seated at Parliament Hill in Ottawa, and is composed of three parts: the King, the Senate, and the House of Commons. By constitutional convention, the ...

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

. It was recently quoted that he sold the painting 'Three' for the value of $27,000 € in

London, England London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major s ...

in 2007. Original horse paintings created by Danevski are collected by many private collectors, including the famous jockey, Desmond Sanford "Sandy" Hawley. Danveski was commissioned in 2003 by The Ontario Jockey Club to paint a portrait of the champion horse, Wando. The horse won the Canadian Triple Crown in 2003. During the same year, he was commissioned to paint a portrait of

, the founder of Magna International and also a portrait of Moses Znaimer, founder of

Citytv Toronto CITY-DT (channel 57) is a television station in Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, serving as the Flagship (broadcasting), flagship station of the Citytv network. It is owned-and-operated station, owned and operated by network parent Rogers Sp ...

and ZoomerMedia.

Influence

In the book Heavenly Iconostasis of Danevski, Danevski stated that he is influenced by

Nature Nature, in the broadest sense, is the physics, physical world or universe. "Nature" can refer to the phenomenon, phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. The study of nature is a large, if not the only, part of science. ...

El Greco Domḗnikos Theotokópoulos ( el, Δομήνικος Θεοτοκόπουλος ; 1 October 1541 7 April 1614), most widely known as El Greco ("The Greek"), was a Greek painter, sculptor and architect of the Spanish Renaissance. "El G ...

Francisco Goya Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes (; ; 30 March 174616 April 1828) was a Spanish romantic painter and printmaker. He is considered the most important Spanish artist of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. His paintings, drawings, and ...

Diego Velázquez Diego Rodríguez de Silva y Velázquez (baptized June 6, 1599August 6, 1660) was a Spanish painter, the leading artist in the court of King Philip IV of Spain and Portugal, and of the Spanish Golden Age. He was an individualistic artist of th ...

and

Rembrandt Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (, ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), usually simply known as Rembrandt, was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker and draughtsman. An innovative and prolific master in three media, he is generally consid ...

.Milan R. Durlo (2003). Heavenly Iconostasis of Danevski. p. 77.

Films

A number of films have been created about Danevski's life and work. In 2010, Omni TV produced a documentary filmed on location in

and

Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, Canada about Danevski's life, ''Confessions of the Heart'', which covered much of his life and his artistic work. The film ''Icons of God’s Eyes'', also featured Danevski, which was produced by the San Paolo Film Company and The Vatican.

References