"Let's Meet in Bourj Hammoud" Gouache, 70x50 cm

1. Ever since I was a child, I used to draw and paint whenever I had the chance. At Yeghishe Manoukian College, we had arts and crafts classes where we were encouraged to be creative. At that time and during the Lebanese Civil War, when I was three or four years old, my mother used to assign weekly hours for drawing, painting, and crafts at home. My parents would collect stacks of paper and crayons so that we would have ample time to entertain ourselves inside the shelters. After the war, I used to carry some drawing papers with me when I went to my grandmother's house. It became my hobby!

2. I owe a lot to my school, Yeghishe Manoukian College, and especially my art teacher, who motivated and encouraged me to express myself freely. My family also encouraged me by providing the physical and emotional space for visualization, gaining experience, creation, and the motivation to always try, irrespective of the result. For almost 10 years, I couldn't paint or draw due to the hectic life that education and new responsibilities endowed on me. I resisted the hobby, although it never stopped being my passion. Nearly three years ago, career problems and unexpected life changes created a huge void that needed to be filled and transformed into something else. That difficult stage was the step that incentivized me to return to my roots and try the hobby again. It’s not just a hobby anymore, but a part of my daily routine, my passion, and canvas of expression.

3. Art, and painting in particular, is a domain where I find myself free to express anything. For me, there is nothing ugly or harsh and everything can be energized and brought to life with some colors and composition. Color is my first attraction. Urban and rural areas capture my attention, because I see life there—enclosed inside houses and nature. In this regard, my homeland is an inspiration to me, because its history is not "a past" anymore, but a lively dream that we as Armenians strive to enhance and attain. I love to draw and paint the cities that capture my attention. I love the laundry hanging, the mess around the houses and the balconies, the electric wires, and the chaos around them. Bourj Hammoud is a big three-dimensional canvas for me, where I like to see colorful, happy, and strong buildings speak with each other in harmony. Trees have also been my passion, since their branches remind me of our nerve cells.