The prince charming of Armenian pop - Armenian Reporter

Naush Boghossian.Le Mur de LaPropriete, 1957,oil on canvas50 x 60cm.Carzou represents acentury through his artcanvasFrench-Armenianartist’s unrivaled styleby Naush BoghossianGLENDALE, Calif. —The art communityis celebrating the work ofpopular French-Armenian artistJean Carzou, on the year he wouldhave turned 100.Seven years after his death atthe age of 93, Carzou’s paintings,drawings and watercolors will beon display through the end of themonth at Stephanie’s Art Galleryin La Canada, Calif. – work itsartistic director says reflects theconscience of the 20th century.Carzou’s art, which graces museumsin France, Russia, Australia,Israel, and Egypt among othercountries, remains as relevant asever in a world that continues tograpple with war, ethnic strife,and the ever-increasing influenceof technology.But the continued appreciationof his work is perhaps the greatesttestament to a man who neverdeserted his faith in humanityand nature; his art embracing thehope that light and peace are presenteven in the darkest creations.“Springing from somewhere,life will always bud again,” as describedby Grigor K’eoseyan in hisbook Carzou: Mogakan ashkhari menkarich’e (translated into Englishby Ara Kalaydjian).Born Karnig Zouloumian onJan. 14, 1907, in Aleppo, Syria,Carzou grew up in a volatile andrevolutionary time. He saw twoworld wars, economic depression,the Cold War with its threat of nuclearannihilation, and the rapidadvancement of technology.Although he escaped the 1915Armenian Genocide, the eventbecame the source of a recurringtheme in his work: desolation andsolitude. And though he was notagainst progress, he was also consumedby the increasing influenceof technology on modern life.Carzou said of progress, “Themachine cannot change humandestiny; and I believe firmly thatby distancing himself from nature,man actually departs fromtruth. . . . I see a great many captives,but very few happy people.”Carzou’s first significant brushwith art came at the age of nineafter the death of his father, whenhe and his mother took over hisfather’s photography business.He later studied architectureC16 Armenian Reporter Arts & Culture 11/10/2007