1901-75 / painter
Elene studied at the Tbilisi Academy of Art and in 1922 left for Paris with a group of several other Georgian artists to study. It was there where she began her successful career, exhibiting works in exhibitions and gaining popularity as she studied. After returning to Tbilisi she continued to paint and also did artwork for the stage director Kote Marjanishvili and designed books. After World War II she began doing theatrical set designing across the Soviet Union.
In 1939 she was given her own studio, which became a cultural centre of sorts. Today it is her house museum. Starting in the 1960s she staged many personal exhibitions across the Soviet Union and beyond its borders.
In 1971 Elene was the first Georgian woman awarded the Shota Rustaveli State Prize. Best known among her paintings are her unique landscapes of Tbilisi's old district.