Curated by
Vigen Galstyan

Exhibition Dates:
September 17 – February 17, 2027

The international exhibition “The Face of Humanity: Surenyants’ Abandoned and Humanist Art,” marks a major event in the history of Armenian art. More than 130 years after its creation, Vardges Surenyants’ masterpiece The Abandoned (1894) will be exhibited in Armenia — his homeland — for the first time.

Coming to Armenia through an exceptional loan from the Abylkhan Kasteyev National Museum of Arts of the Republic of Kazakhstan, The Abandoned will be the centerpiece of the exhibition. At the same time, three of Surenyants’ key monumental works will be brought together in a single exhibition space, forming a cohesive triptych: The Abandoned (1894), Desecrated Sanctity (1895), and After the Massacre (1898). The exhibition will also feature works by Panos Terlemezian, Sarkis Katchadourian, Gerardo Orakian, Mariam Aslamazyan, Armine Galentz, and others, revealing the broader evolution of humanistic thought in Armenian art. Two works from the collection of the History Museum of Armenia will also be presented, alongside the historic door of the Church of St. Apostles depicted in Surenyants’ The Abandoned. This creates a unique connection between the historical original and its artistic representation.

The exhibition will be followed by an international forum, “The Face of Humanity: Art, Cultural Diplomacy and Humanism,” to be held at the National Gallery of Armenia on September 17. The forum aims to foster professional, interinstitutional, and international dialogue around art and culture, examining them in the context of cultural diplomacy, art history, and humanistic values.