Mikhail Bilanishvili was a Georgian modernist artist. Born as the son of the colonel of the Russian army Yosef Bilanishvili and his wife Ekaterine Tarkhnishvili, Mikheil, like his older brother Soso and his sister Nino, studied at the Tbilisi Art Academy, first with Gigo Gabashvili and then with the sculptor Iakob Nikoladse. He may also have studied with Eugene Lanceray, who frequently visited Tiflis from 1920 to 1934. After completing his studies, Micheil, like his sister Nino, began teaching drawing at the Tiflis men’s high school.
Thanks to the grant received in 1924, the young artist came to Paris, where he joined a group of Georgian painters. At the beginning of 1927, Bilanishvili, together with David Kakabadze and Elene Akvelidiani, took part in the 38th exhibition of independent artists Salon des Independants. His works were highly rated by Parisian art critics.
In order to earn funds for daily living, he worked in one of the Paris chemical plants. He soon contracted tuberculosis. His friend Lukas Chitarishwili helped him sell his paintings and got him a place in a sanatorium. There he met a Georgian nurse, Baba Javrishvili, who remained faithful to him to the end. He died in Paris in 1934.