ARTHUR K

contemporary Lebanese-Armenian self-taught painter

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Arthur K. is a contemporary Lebanese-Armenian self-taught painter. Born in 1945, he is a doctor by profession, as well as a poet and an essayist. As well as working in many different fields, in the last 20 years of his career as an artist Arthur K. has gone by many names: Arthur, Nicolian, Nakoul and more recently Arthur K., which stands for Harout Kapriel Nicolian. In his many exhibitions in Europe, the Middle-East, Asia and North America, the artist employs acrylic and print on canvas to form a series of collages each bearing a different assemblage of script, old photos, and newspaper and magazine cuttings.

“I employ the letters of the Armenian alphabet to express my message,” explains Arthur K. “Due to the Genocide of Armenians there is something of human rights in our alphabet; [that is] if there are any human rights.”

The dominant colours are black, red, blue and gold. Classical images stand juxtaposed with modern icons of famous and familiar faces such as Leonardo Da Vinci, Giorgio de Chirico, Freud, Parajanov and Brecht. Violent and romantic images harmonise into an aesthetically pleasing effect where the inter-textuality is obscure. It disturbs the observer as they try to weave the disparate parts into a cohesive narrative that seems hauntingly absent. One canvas has the late Italian tenor Luciano Pavarotti placed centrally, arms outstretched. “Pavarotti is a pillar of human rights because he is happy,” he explains, with total sincerity that renders any irony or sarcasm obsolete.

Intermingled with and interrupting these series of collages are his canvases entitled “Golden Houses,” painted with mixed media on canvas, as well as a number of naive paintings of Phoenician icons. “Golden Houses” depict old, red roofed Lebanese houses, checkered with brown deterioration and golden wisps that rise like smoke or thin branches into blossoming flames of gold, reds and blues. The windows are black and hollow and the houses stand crowded together. “The houses are about memory.” Arthur K. has exhibited his works internationally through Noah’s Ark Art Gallery in Beirut, New York, Sao Paulo, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, and recently in the 12th International Art Exhibition in Beijing, China. He says his greatest influence is the philosophy of the author Zekharia Sitchin, who wrote about the birth of civilization in the areas where the people of Sumer, Mari, Urartu and Phoenicia lived, and about a missing 12th planet in the sky. Sitchin was an Azerbaijani-born American author (1920-2010), whose books propose an explanation for human origins involving ancient astronauts. Sitchin attributes the creation of ancient Sumerian culture to the Anunnaki, which he postulates was a race of extraterrestrials from a planet beyond Neptune called Nibiru. He believed this hypothetical planet of Nibiru to be in an elongated, elliptical orbit in the Earth’s own solar system, asserting that Sumerian mythology reflects this view.

Arthur K.’s early works depict rocket-like structures with the concept of Mesopotamian, Phoenician and Egyptian figurines. “If you look at Baalbek, the Pyramids and other ancient temples you can see how much more evolved they were. Even in England today you don’t know how Stonehenge was built.” The artist’s work is a pastiche of styles from three different periods: naive icons, expressionism and postmodernist collage. The collages, by their very nature, present a blank parody of their own self-reflexivity and textual references and render the political message of human rights null and void. Rather than undermine the artist’s political views however, this serves to emphasise his view of our current degradation, juxtaposed with the more idealized epochs of our lost heritage.

Exhibition dates:
- Jan. 2012 - Beirut, Lebanon, Lucy Tutunjian Art Gallery
- Dec. 2010 - Beirut, Lebanon, Matossian Gallery
- Jun. 2009 - Beijing, China, special mention in the 12th Beijing International Art Exhibition
- Dec. 2007 - Montreal, Canada, AGBU Gallery
- Mar. 2006 - Toronto, Canada, Hamazkaine Center
- Mar. 2005 - Beirut, Lebanon, Noah's Ark Gallery Exhibition

Solo exhibition:
- Jan. 2012 - Beirut, Lebanon, Lucy Tutunjian Art Gallery
- Dec. 2010 - Beirut, Lebanon, Matossian Gallery
- Mar. 2005 - Beirut, Lebanon, Noah's Ark Gallery

Exhibition Group:
- Jun. 2009 - Beijing China, special mention in the 12th Beijing International Art Exhibition
- Dec. 2007 - Montreal, Canada, AGBU Gallery
- Mar. 2006 - Toronto, Canada, Hamazkaine Center

Luxe-Immo Interview 2012:

Why did you become an artist?
Painting for me is a natural inspiration born from a profound feeling towards our ancestors and patrimony. National enthusiasm is an expression of feeling and awareness of our heritage and rich history. Some of my exhibitions were dedicated to the beauty and debt we owe the Phoenician era.

What stages did you go through?
I went through several stages. Firstly, due to my medical background I started by reproducing Picasso paintings and naive art with distorted anatomies. Then I started developing my own archaic, stylistic style with dominant colors which is influenced by a school of artists that includes Armenian painters like Minas and Baradjanov.

Do you have any strong artistic influences?
Yes, I am influenced by Armenian painters, mainly Minas and Baradjanov.

What is your technique?
I am self-taught, I use mixed media freely depending what I have in my hands, using my hands or brushes or any object for collage. Most of the time I use acrylic paints.

Can you tell us about your next projects?
My next projects are large-scale paintings, a series that will be dedicated to 20th century iconic personalities like Einstein, Pavarotti or John Lennon, who changed the character of so many in my generation towards a better feeling for humanity.

What is your favorite subject?
Mainly painted sculptures, sort of paintings in space which depict ancient periods with kings and queens in abstract forms – today's atmosphere but in antiquity.

How do you see yourself in the future?
Currently I am well known in Asia, the Middle-East and Europe. My next phase will be to penetrate the North American market and concentrate on large-scale paintings.

Interview with Luxe-Immo 2012

ARTHUR K

contemporary Lebanese-Armenian self-taught painter

Luxe-Immo Interview 2012: