Arbe (Born 1958) Armenian/American, Signed and Numbered Hand Embellished Giclee

Lot description

Arbe (Born 1958) Armenian/American, Signed and Numbered Hand Embellished Giclee. Depicts two abstract female figures with musical instruments. Signed bottom right. Numbered 175/195 bottom left. Empty plastic envelope and small label on back with title: "Sweet Music." Overall Size: 28 3/8 x 23 3/8 in. Sight Size: 18 x 13 3/8 in. Ara Berbeyan (best known mononymously as Arbe) was born in Yerevan, Armenia in 1958. He grew up in Soviet Armenia, exposed to art early on as his father was a well-known artist and professor. Arbe had his first exhibition when he was only 12, and his paintings were sent on a two year international tour by the U.S.S.R. called “The World by Children’s Eyes,” visiting France, Italy, Canada, and the United States. Of the sixty-five paintings only four returned to Armenia, as the rest were sold or placed on permanent exhibition in state buildings throughout the Soviet Union. Arbe received his Bachelors and Masters degrees from the University of Art and Design in Yerevan. In 1981 he was questioned by the KGB for going through unapproved channels to acquire books on western artists like Dalí, Picasso, Titian, Rembrandt, and especially Klimt. He began his career as a fine artist after graduation, accepting commissions for murals at the Yerevan Airport, theaters, hotels, and other government projects. He also opened an architectural practice called “Gostproect,” where he designed the facades of public buildings and office complexes. When he was not painting or building for the State, he was working on commissions for private citizens throughout Europe or upper level government officials. A versatile and prolific artist, he painted classical portraits, landscapes, murals, and even business signs in many styles, from cubism to surrealism to socialist realism. He preferred painting in oil with a metallic texture, and occasionally gold leaf, filling his works with earth tones, enticing patterns, and spiraling or overlapping designs. In 1984 Arbe immigrated to the United States, where he met and married his wife Nazik, also from Armenia, and had two children. He found representation easily through major galleries like Park West and Gagosian, and continues to make original works and prints at his home studio in Los Angeles, California to this day.