Martiros Saryan

Martiros Saryan was born on February 28, 1880, in Novy Nakhichevan into an Armenian diaspora family. Studying at the Moscow School of Painting under Valentin Serov and Konstantin Korovin, Saryan was affiliated with the Blue Rose symbolist movement before traveling extensively through Egypt, Turkey, and Persia.

Saryan settled permanently in Soviet Armenia in 1921, creating the state emblem and establishing the National Gallery of Armenia. His canvases—imbued with blazing cobalt blues, radiant yellows, and saturated oranges—captured the ancient stone architecture, sunlit vineyards, and rugged mountains of Armenia with unprecedented modern vitality.