Events / Exhibitions

15.09.2017 - 15.01.2018

“Hovhannes Aivazovsky. Creation” an exhibition dedicated to the artist’s birth anniversary

Hovhannes Aivazovsky’s 200th anniversary is a remarkable event in the entire world's cultural life. It was included in the list of the UNESCO anniversaries 2017.
The series of the jubilee exhibitions opened in various cities is symbolically summarized with the exhibition in the National Gallery of Armenia, representing Hovhannes Aivazovsky’s creative path according to the artistic and graphic collections of the National Gallery of Armenia, other works kept in the museums of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin. The famous canvas “Chaos: Creation of the World” from the collection of Mekhitarist Congregation of Venice is exhibited for the first time in Armenia.
The documents and photos kept in The Mesrop Mashtots Institute of Ancient Manuscripts, National Archive and Charents Museum of Literature and Arts reveal the different aspects of the patriotic artist's activity. Aivazovsky is one of those artists who have realized their national belonging and roots with the whole essence, worried about their nation’s destiny despite of living outside of the homeland: he frequently raised his voice of protest against the enemy's policy of cleansing of Armenians, and handed up his compatriots.
The exhibition “Hovhannes Aivazovsky: The Creation” is composed of four sections: “creations” that present Aivazovsky’s marine painting with various genre displays, his creative path, and let us get acquainted with the artist's artistic perceptions and method.
The different scenes of Crimea, Russia tell about the places the painter spent his years of childhood and adolescence: environment that greatly influenced the formation of his mentality and worldview, and where he received excellent academic education, obtaining deep professional knowledge.
One of the turning points in Aivazovsky’s life is travelling to Europe. The presented different artistic and graphic works outline Aivazovsky’s marine path and extensive creative geography. With his comprehensive “cartography” he presents himself to us as a sailor, who depicted the element of nature not as an observer standing on the shore, but as the participant and discoverer of all those. And by remembering those impressions, he conveyed them from memory onto canvas in the further years either.
Among the artistic works of Hovhannes Aivazovsky are distinguished the night scenes fraught with mysterious and romantic mood, that were widely spread in different branches of art of romanticism. The moonlit night scenes of Constantinople, Darial Gorge, Nice and other picturesque places are endowed with great expressiveness.
And, however, Aivazovsky’s passion was stormy sea - the key topic of his works. In the heavy scenes Aivazovsky’s brush works with the greatest virtuosity conveying the dramatic struggle of the unbridled passion and struggling man. But does not matter what kind of dreadful storm Aivazovsky depicts, a glimpse of light cracks black clouds in the corner of canvas; sometimes sharp and harsh, sometimes weak and hardly noticeable. In Martiros Saryan’s words: “It is right in it - in the light of salvation is the meaning of Aivazovsky’s all storms”: the light that takes to the Creation from chaos and darkness
 

Permanent
exhibition

Good Samaritan

canvas, oil
101x148,5 cm