Born in Shkoder in 1972 Gentian grew up surrounded by the paintings of his uncle, one of the most celebrated artists in Albania, the great master Ismail Lulani. Inspired by the paintings, sketches, studies and books around him Gentian started drawing and painting when he was 10 years old. Later, he enrolled in the secondary School of Arts (Prenke Jakova) in his hometown and continued his studies in the Academies of Fine Arts in Tirana and Rome. The ten years he spent in Rome after his studies were thoroughly dedicated to the art of painting and to the intensive study of masterpieces from the Renaissance old masters. In addition to his school studies Gentian took private lessons with old masters in Rome and Florence. His move to Ireland in 2000 was followed by an honours degree in Art and Art History at the CIT Crawford College of Art and Design, Cork and the opening of his studio and gallery on the grounds of Ballymaloe House in County Cork.
Gentian’s work has been shown successfully in solo and group exhibitions. In 2006 he was accepted for the BP Awards by the National Portrait Gallery, London for his portrait ‘British Ambassador’. This painting was also displayed in the Royal Academy of England, London and the National Portrait Gallery, Scotland. In 2011 he had a solo exhibition at the Austrian Parliament, Vienna. In 2013 Gentian completed the Masters in Art & Process at the CIT Crawford College of Art and Design, Cork.
In his art practice to date Gentian has placed a strong emphasis on portraiture with mythological and symbolic content. He also paints landscapes and traditional animal husbandry scenes.
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After Paul Henry 