This long overdue first exhibition in London of Sergei Paradjanov's drawings, collages, paintings and costumes, is an outstanding event in several ways.

Born in 1924 in Tbilisi, Georgia, to Armenian parents, Paradjanov came to international attention in 1968 with the film “The Shadows of our Forgotten Ancestors”. Despite this recognition, the Soviet authorities later rejected his screenplays, confiscated his films, and put him in prison for many years (1973–78 and 1982–83). His theatrical personality, off-handed manners, eccentricity and provocative attitude were badly perceived by communist officials.