Martiros Sarian: Armenia's Soul in Color

Rouzan Sarian

Martiros Sarian is one of Armenia’s most celebrated painters and a major figure in 20th-century art. His paintings are on currency, stamps, textbooks and hanging official institutions. Sarian's artistic mission was to show the soul of Armenia through colors. He pioneered this distinctively Armenian modernism, blending Western avant-garde techniques like Post-Impressionism and Fauvism with eastern influence, namely from ancient Armenian art. Best known for his vivid, colorful landscapes, portraits, and depictions of Armenian life, his works reflect both the natural beauty of Armenia and the inner vitality of its people.

Originally published Octubre 2025.

About the speaker

head shot Rouzan Sarian
head shot Rouzan Sarian

Rouzan Sarian

Dr. Rouzan Sarian is a philologist and art critic who graduated from Yerevan State University. She is the grand-daughter of Martiros Sarian and former director of the Martiros Sarian’s House-Museum in Yerevan where she curated dozens of exhibitions. Dr. Sarian is a senior research scientist at the Institute of Art, in the National Academy of Sciences of Armenia, and has published a number of articles, books, catalogs and albums, as well as Matiros Sarian’s epistolary heritage in three volumes. 

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