Vardges Sureniants

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Vardges Sureniants was born in Akhaltsikhe, Russian Empire in modern-day Georgia on 27 February 1860. His father, Hakop Sureniants, was a priest and taught religious history.{{cite book |last=Mikayelyan |first=Martin |year=2003 |title=Vardges Sowrenyants=Vardges Sureniants |publisher=Anahit |location=Erevan}} He and his wife, Ustine Sureniants, had five children— four sons and one daughter, with Vardges being the youngest.{{Cite book |last=Harutyunyan |first=Vahan |title=Վարդգես Սուրենյանց |publisher=Armenian SSR Science Academy Publishing Council |publication-date=1960 |language=Armenian |trans-title=Vardges Surenyants}} The Sureniants family moved to Simferopol in 1868. As a family passionate about art, the Surenyants receive a warm welcome from a noble seascape painter Hovhannes Aivazovsky in Simferopol. Around 1868, young Vardges Surenyants joined a travel journey to Bakhchisaray with Aivazovsky’s family, returning full of impressions. He admired the Zuruck Su River, the halls of Abdul Sakhal Girei Khan’s palace, the gardens and the marble fountains. He was especially fascinated with the famous Fountain of Tears, which he later sketched at home with a pencil. That very drawing impressed the famous seascape painter Aivazovsky, who saw a great potential and talent in the young artist’s work. For his drawing, young Vardges Surenyants receives great encouragement from Aivazovsky, who gives him a set of paints as a gesture of support. {{Cite book |last=Ghazaryan |first=Manya |title=Վարդգես Սուրենյանց |publisher=Armenian State Publishing House |year=1960 |language=Armenian |trans-title=Vardges Surenyants}} Sureniants' father was then appointed a presbyter to the Armenian diocese in Moscow. Until the age of 10, Vardges Surenyants did not attend school in either Crimea or Akhaltsikhe. However, by that time, he had gained considerable knowledge in the humanities for his age. He was fluent in both Armenian and Russian, with his proficiency in Armenian being largely attributed to his father. When in Moscow, Sureniants had an opportunity to study at the prestigious Armenian Lazarian School located in the city. On June 13, 1875, the pedagogical council of the Lazarian Seminary decided to award Vardges a scholarship in recognition of his artistic talent, and grant him a place at the prestigious Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture, and Architecture, a leading institution in Russian artistic circles at the time. He began his studies there in 1876 and graduated in 1879. In 1878, after losing his scholarship, Surenyants’s father decided to send him abroad (Stuttgart) to study at the esteemed institutions in Munich Polytechnic. In 1880, after selling a large composition piece (name unknown) for 800 Marks at a student exhibition, Surenyants took a risk and left the Polytechnic Institution after his second year and was admitted to the Academy of Fine Arts, where he studied in the studio of German painter Otto Zeyt, receiving more education in painting and ultimately graduating from the academy in 1885.{{sfn|Adamyan|2012|p=7}}. His father was deeply shocked by this decision and tried everything in his power to change his mind. “I am a painter, and I don’t want to fall behind in two things. I don’t want to be a dilettante in painting. Finally, I do not have the sympathy and strong aspiration for architecture to be able to overcome the difficulties created for me and finish,” said he to G. Khalatyan, who visited him at his father’s request to convince him to abandon painting. In 1886, Surenyants traveled extensively to Iran and the South Caucasus. By 1892, he settled in Moscow, where he established his life and career.

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| footer = In a response to the Hamidian massacres, Sureniants painted a series of paintings which include After the Massacre (left) in 1899 and Desecrated Shrine (right) in 1895.{{sfn|Holding|2011|p=47}}{{cite web|title=Vardges Sureniants|url=http://www.khachkar.ru/encyclopedia/?id=209|publisher=Khachkar Journal|language=ru|quote=Художник, прекрасно осознающий свое место в пространстве армянской культуры, не мог не обратиться к теме Геноцида армян – погромов и резни армян в Турции 1894–1895 годов. Эмоциональный тонус полотен «Попранная святыня», «После резни» буквально наэлектризован хаотической стихией трагизма.}}{{cite news|last=Ghazinyan|first=Aris|title=Armenian as International Painters|url=http://nationalidea.am/articles.php?id=96|newspaper=National Idea|date=October 2008|language=hy|quote=1890–ական թթ. Սուրենյանցը ստեղծում է հայոց ջարդերին նվիրված կտավների մի ամբողջ շարք. «Լքյալը», «Ոտնահարված սրբությունը», «Ջարդից հետո»-ն...}}{{cite web|title=Armenian Genocide in Art |url=http://avarayr.com/armenian-genocide-art/ |publisher=Avarayr |date=24 April 2010 |quote=Vardges Surenyants (1860–1921), a native of Tiflis, painted several works that depicted the suffering of his kin under Ottoman rule following the Hamidian Massacres. The Abandoned (1899) After the Massacre (1899) Profanation of the Shrine (1895) |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100510143220/http://avarayr.com/armenian-genocide-art/ |archive-date=10 May 2010 }}

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He traveled to Italy in 1881 and visited the island of San Lazzaro degli Armeni where the Armenian Catholic congregation of the Mechitarists is located. In their library he studied Armenian fine art and Armenian manuscripts. He created portraits of Mikayel Chamchian and others. In 1883, he wrote his first article which was published in the Armenian newspaper Meghu Hayastani entitled "A Few Words about Armenian Architecture".{{sfn|Adamyan|2012|p=7}} In 1885–87, he traveled to the Persian cities of Tabriz, Tehran, Isfahan and Shiraz with Russian orientalist Valentin Zhukovski's expedition. After his travels, Sureniants translated William Shakespeare's Richard III and sent it to Constantinople so that actor Bedros Adamian could have it produced.{{sfn|Adamyan|2012|p=8}} In 1890–91 he taught art history at the Gevorkian Seminary in Armenia.{{sfn|Adamyan|2012|p=8}}{{sfn|Mouradian|1995|p=171}}

In 1892 Sureniants visited Ani, Lake Sevan and became familiar with the everyday customs of rural Armenian life. In the same year, he went to Moscow where he became involved in many artistic circles. In 1901 an exhibition of his works was held in Baku. This was to be Sureniants' only exhibition in his lifetime.{{sfn|Adamyan|2012|p=9}} In 1901–02 he sculpted a bust of the Russian Armenian painter Ivan Aivazovsky.

During the Armenian genocide, Sureniants painted many paintings of survivors who found refuge in Russian Armenia.{{sfn|Adamyan|2012|p=3}} In 1916 he went to Tiflis, where he and other artists such as Mardiros Saryan and Panos Terlemezian founded the Armenian Artistic Society.{{sfn|Mouradian|1995|p=171}}{{cite journal |last=Shushanik |first=Zohrabyan |title=The Tendencies of Symbolism in Vardges Surenyants' Art |journal=Historical-Philological Journal |pages=57–73 |url=http://hpj.asj-oa.am/2755/1/2010%2D1%2857%29.pdf |language=hy |issn=0135-0536}}

In 1917 Sureniants moved to Yalta where he was commissioned to draw the decorations for the newly built Armenian cathedral. Sureniants decorated the altar, walls, and dome of the church.{{cite book |last=Aleksandrovich Ponomarenko |first=Konstantin |year=1971 |title=Yalta: a short guide |publisher=Krym Publishers |page=41 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yAYQAQAAIAAJ |edition=3}} While decorating the church Surentiants suffered a grave illness. He died on 6 April 1921, and is buried in the premises of the Armenian church of Yalta.{{sfn|Adamyan|2012|p=10}}

File:Вірменська церква, м.Ялта.JPG

In his early career as an artist, Sureniants became interested in caricatures and sketches during his study at the Lazarian School. While in Munich, Sureniants also worked at painting and line drawing. Some of his caricatures were published in the Fliegende Blätter magazine. He was also known for his illustrations of famous literary works, including Ferdowsi's Shahname, Alexander Pushkin's The Fountain of Bakhchisaray, the fairy tales of Oscar Wilde and works by the Belgian poet Georges Rodenbach, the Armenian writer Smbat Shahaziz and Alexander Tsaturyan.

Sureniants is often categorized as a realist painter.{{cite book |last=Patkerasrah |first=Hayastani Petakan |year=1984 |title=Art Gallery of Armenia, Yerevan |publisher=Aurora Art Publishers |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qnNLAAAAMAAJ |editor=Martin Mikaelian}} He once said that "painters must paint life the way it appears in front of our eyes."{{sfn|Adamyan|2012|p=13}} His style reflected this notion through his depiction of landscapes and historical events. He played an instrumental role in reviving Armenian historical events through the medium of art.{{cite book |year=1974 |title=Передвижники |publisher=Aurora Art |page=288 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GfjVAAAAMAAJ |editor=Andreĭ Konstantinovich Lebedev}} Pointillism was one of his chief techniques.{{sfn|Adalian|2010|p=190}}

Despite his success as a painter, Sureniants had only one monographic exhibition in his lifetime. However, there have been many posthumous exhibitions in his honor, including exhibitions at Venice (1924), Yerevan (1931, 1941, 1960, 2010) and elsewhere.{{sfn|Adamyan|2012|p=12}} The most recent exhibition was held in 2010 in honor of Sureniants' 150th anniversary.{{cite web |date=26 November 2010 |title=An exhibition in place on 150th anniversary of Vardges Sureniants |url=http://www.gov.am/en/news/item/5414/ |publisher=Government of Armenia}} During the exhibition, the Prime Minister of Armenia, Tigran Sargsyan, said that:

{{blockquote|Sureniants can well be ascribed to the family of the world's best artists, and our State has much to do in this respect: the celebration of his 150th anniversary should launch the process of his international recognition. I happened to discover an exciting detail as I familiarized myself with his life experience. During his lifetime, Sureniants had only one personal exposition: in Baku in 1901. Our initiative is exceptional from this point of view as we have tried to bring to the public's attention all we could collect over time.}}

File:Surenyants.jpg

Sureniants was well known in the art community and enjoyed personal friendships with a number of famous Russian artists including Igor Grabar, Vasily Polenov, Aleksandr Golovin and the sculptors Alexander Matveyev and Nikolay Andreyev.{{cite book |last=Mikayelian |first=M |year=1985 |editor=Hambardzumyan, Viktor |editor-link=Viktor Hambardzumyan |title=Soviet Armenian Encyclopedia Volume 11 |publisher=Armenian Encyclopedia Publishing |location=Yerevan |language=hy |pages=205–207}}

One admirer of his was the Russian painter Ilya Repin, who said:

{{blockquote|The paintings of Vardges Sureniants fascinated me the first time I saw them; he is a bright exemplar of the new [painting] school – his originality is of unusually high proportions, and his passionate love for the slightest detail is outstanding.{{sfn|Adamyan|2012|p=15}}}}

Another admirer was the Russian art critic Vladimir Stasov, who said: {{blockquote|Sureniants' superior skill in painting the architecture of the East while paying close attention to the intricate details of its motifs provides his paintings a splendor of colorfulness.{{sfn|Adamyan|2012|p=15}}}}

The Armenian painter Martiros Saryan once said of Sureniants that, "with a broad understanding of culture, his best works contained the beating heart of the Armenian nation" and added, "It is therefore certain that Sureniants will last as long as the Armenian people shall last."{{sfn|Adamyan|2012|p=15}}From the original Armenian: "Բարձր կուլտուրայով կատարված նրա լավագոյն գործերում ուժեղ տրոփում է Հայաստանի սիրտը, դրա համար Վարդգես Սուրենյանցը կապրի այնքան, որքան կապրի հայ ժողովուրդը..."

File:Shamiram ara.jpeg|Shamiram and Ara the Beautiful

File:Sureniants - Mutter.jpg|Virgin and Child

File:В. Суренянц. Возвращение царицы Запел на престол, 1909.jpg|Return of Queen Zabel of Armenia

File:Суренянц._Женщина-рыцарь.jpeg|Knight-Woman

File:Sureniants_-_After_the_Massacre.jpg|After the Massacre

File:Vardges Surenyants Salome.jpg|Salome

File:Фирдуси читает поэму «Шах-Наме» шаху Махмуду Газневи (1913).jpg|Ferdowsi reading Shahname to Shah Mahmud Ghaznavi

File:Women Leaving the Church at Ani.png|Women Leaving a Church at Ani

File:Суренянц, «Попранная святыня», 1895.jpg|Desecrated Shrine

File:Мкртич_Хримян.jpg|Mkrtich Khrimian

File:Unknownman.jpg|Unknown man

File:В. Суренянц. Выход Крестного хода из Эчмиадзинского собора, 1895.jpg|The Departure of the Procession from St. Etchmiadzin Cathedral

File:Суренянц. Портрет Идельсон.jpg|Portrait of Idleson

File:Surenyants BM.jpg|The Virgin

File:Vardkes.jpg|The monastery of St. Hripsime

{{Reflist|30em}}

• {{cite book |last=Adalian |first=Rouben Paul|author-link=Rouben Paul Adalian |year=2010 |title=Historical dictionary of Armenia |publisher=Scarecrow Press |location=Lanham, MD |isbn=978-0810874503 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QS-vSjHObOYC |edition=2nd }}
• {{cite journal |last=Adamyan |first=A. |year=2012 |title=Vartkes Sureniants |journal=Cultural Association of the Armenian National Library |url=http://nla.am/arm/doc/SUREN.pdf |publisher=National Library of Armenia |language=hy |access-date=4 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304094445/http://nla.am/arm/doc/SUREN.pdf |archive-date=4 March 2016 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all }}
• {{cite book |last=Holding |first=Nicholas Holding with Deirdre |year=2011 |title=Armenia with Nagorno Karabagh |publisher=Bradt |location=Chalfont St. Peter, Bucks |isbn=978-1841623450 |page=47 |edition=3rd }}
• {{cite book |last=Mouradian |first=George |year=1995 |title=Armenian infotext |publisher=Bookshelf Publishers |location=Southgate, Mich. |isbn=0963450921 |page=171 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PC1uAAAAMAAJ |edition=1st }}

• {{commons category-inline|Vardges Surenyants}}

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Category:Painters from the Russian Empire