SARIAN, MARTIROS (SERGEEVICH)

born Feb. 16 [Feb. 28, New Style], 1880, Nakhichevan-na-Donu, Russia died May 5, 1972, Yerevan, Armenia, U.S.S.R. major Armenian painter of landscapes, still lifes, and portraits. Sarian received training in painting at the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture, and Architecture (18971904), where among his teachers were the noted realist artists Konstantin Korovin and Valentin Serov. Soon Sarian was exhibiting his bright, decoratively coloured paintings in Moscow. He continued to paint on his travels to Turkey, Egypt, and Iran (191013); he attempted to communicate the sensuousness of the Orient in large, frescolike creations. In the early decades of the 20th century, Impressionism exerted much influence on Russian artists, and Sarian's work revealed the inspiration of Henri Matisse and Paul Gauguin as well. An extended visit to Paris (192628) deepened the influence of Impressionism on his work. But Sarian had moved to Armenia in 1921 and thereafter spent most of his career painting scenes, especially landscapes, of his republic, often showing the vivid effects of light on colour as its mountains reflect the sun. He also painted still lifes and many portraits that attempted to express, sometimes audaciously, his subjects' characters. Sarian became a primary influence on the development of Soviet Armenian nationalist painting. Among his other works, he illustrated books, including Armenian Folk Tales (1933), and designed sets and costumes for the theatre. Sarian served as a deputy to the second through fourth convocations of the U.S.S.R.'s Supreme Soviet. Among his awards were three Orders of Lenin.