Eduard Isabekyan

Eduard Isabekyan (Armenian: Էդուարդ Իսաբեկյան; November 8, 1914 – August 17, 2007) was an Armenian painter, founder of thematic compositional genre in Armenia.

A large number of researches, articles, monographs and dozens of films are dedicated to Eduard Isabekyan.

A separate hall is allotted to Eduard Isabekyan’s permanent exhibition in The National Gallery of Armenia (total number of his works retained there is 121). His paintings are stored in many prestigious museums and private collections.

Eduard Isabekyan was elected as an honorary chairman of "Igdir" patriotic union for the term of his life. During his lifetime the Municipality of Yerevan made a decision to establish a permanent exhibition hall (gallery) for Isabekyan’s art.

Isabekyan is a multi-genre artist. He created extensive and high value compositional paintings, portraits, landscapes, graphics, thematic compositions, book designs.

The basis of his art is humanism and deep patriotism, the sources of his inspiration are Armenian insights, which are expressed in the characters of David of Sassoun, Tsovinar, Sanasar, Baghdasar, David Beck, Sayat Nova, Aksel Bakunts, Tamantsiner and other characters of great national figures. During the Great Patriotic War he depicted the heroic image of Soviet people ("Battle for a city", 1942, "Tanya", 1946), national liberation struggle of the Armenian people ("David Beck", 1945).

Eduard Isabekyan was the founder of thematic compositional genre in Armenia. The basis of his art is the history of Armenian nation and its future, its proud posture and the ecstatic potential. Isabekyan’s works of thematic compositional genre are the achievement of Armenian fine art of the Soviet period. "Young David" (1956, The National Gallery of Armenia), "The Revolt of Haghpat Peasants in 1903" (1957), "Reply to Hazkert" (1960, The National Gallery of Armenia) and other paintings distinguish by their monumental expressiveness, dynamic composition and civic resonance.

A number of Isabekyan’s paintings are characterized by organic intercourse of a man and the native nature: "Old Man from Byurakan and the Artavazik Church" (1956), "Aksel Bakunts" (1956), "Derenik Demirtchyan" (1960), "Curly Boy" (1964), "Sayat Nova" (1964). One of the best examples of Armenian portraiture of Soviet period is the "Mother’s portrait" painting (1944). The thematic center of his landscapes is the epic description of Armenian nature, ancient fortresses and temples: "In the Canyon of Tatev" (1959), "The Oxen Crossing the River by the Bridge" (1959), "Khndzoresk" (1962).

Many paintings are distinguished by artistic saturation: "Horovel" (1956, The National Gallery of Armenia), "Near the well" ("They didn’t come back", 1965), vIn the shade of the treesv (1966), "Artavazd’s death" (1966). The illustrations of Derenik Demirchian’s "Vardananq" and Sero Khanzadyan’s "Mkhitar Sparapet" novels are also commonly known.

Isabekyan is the author of a number of drawings and the series of graphics devoted to painter Arpenik Nalbandyan.

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