The Modern Art Museum of Yerevan (MAMY, Armenian: ) is an

art museum An art museum or art gallery is a building or space for the display of art, usually from the museum's own collection. It might be in public or private ownership and may be accessible to all or have restrictions in place. Although primarily co ...

Yerevan Yerevan ( , , hy, Երևան , sometimes spelled Erevan) is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's oldest continuously inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerevan is the administrative, cultural, and i ...

Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''O ...

. It is located on

Mashtots Avenue Mashtots Avenue ( hy, Մաշտոցի Պողոտա ''Mashtots'i Poghota''), known as Lenin Avenue until 1990, is an avenue in the central Kentron district of Yerevan, Armenia. The avenue starts with the Victory Bridge at the south and ends up w ...

at the central

Kentron District Kentron ( hy, Կենտրոն վարչական շրջան, translit=Kentron varčakan šrĵan), is one of the 12 districts of Yerevan, the capital of Armenia. It comprises the downtown, the commercial centre of the city. As of the 2011 census, th ...

of the capital city of Armenia. The museum was founded in 1972 by the efforts of the painter Henrik Igityan, who was the director of the museum for 37 years and a supporter of then-mayor of Yerevan Grigor Hasratyan.

History

The Modern Art Museum of Yerevan was the first to specialize in

contemporary Contemporary history, in English-language historiography, is a subset of modern history that describes the historical period from approximately 1945 to the present. Contemporary history is either a subset of the late modern period, or it is o ...

and

modern art Modern art includes artistic work produced during the period extending roughly from the 1860s to the 1970s, and denotes the styles and philosophies of the art produced during that era. The term is usually associated with art in which the tradi ...

in the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

.Eurasiannet.org
/ref> The first exposition consisted of works from the 1960s, created by artists who originated from

and the

Armenian Diaspora The Armenian diaspora refers to the communities of Armenians outside Armenia and other locations where Armenians are considered an indigenous population. Since antiquity, Armenians have established communities in many regions throughout the world. ...

. These artists include Minas Avetisian, Ashot Hovhannisian, Martin Petrosian, Hakob Hakobian, Gayane Khachaturian, Vruyr Galstian, Henry Elibekyan, Robert Elibekyan, Haroutiun Galentz, Rudolf Khachatrian, and Ashot Bayandour. The museum currently displays many pieces from this exposition, which were kept as donations from the artists. The museum grew when the following generation of artists added their works in the 1980s: Sargis Hamalbashian, Artur Sargsian, Ararat Sarkissian, Marine Dilanian, Albert Hakobian, Samvel Baghdasarian, Arevik Arevshatian, Ruben Grigorian, Kamo Nigarian, Armen Gevorgian, Tigran Matulian, Teni Vardanian, Gabriel Manoukian, Nina Kchemchyan and Ayvaz Avoyan. In the time since its foundation, many famous artists have visited the museum, including the director of the

Hermitage Museum The State Hermitage Museum ( rus, Государственный Эрмитаж, r=Gosudarstvennyj Ermitaž, p=ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)ɨj ɪrmʲɪˈtaʂ, links=no) is a museum of art and culture in Saint Petersburg, Russia. It is the larges ...

Boris Piotrovsky Boris Borisovich Piotrovsky (russian: Бори́с Бори́сович Пиотро́вский; also written Piotrovskii; – October 15, 1990) was a Soviet Russian academician, historian- orientalist and archaeologist who studied the ancient c ...

, writer

Chingiz Aytmatov Chinghiz Torekulovich Aitmatov (as transliterated from Russian; ky, Чыңгыз Төрөкулович Айтматов, translit=Chynggyz Törökulovich Aytmatov; 12 December 1928 – 10 June 2008) was a Kyrgyz author who wrote mainly in Russi ...

, Italian poet writer and screenwriter

Tonino Guerra Antonio "Tonino" Guerra (16 March 1920 – 21 March 2012) was an Italian poet, writer and screenwriter who collaborated with some of the most prominent film directors in the world. Life and work Guerra was born in Santarcangelo di Romagna. Acco ...

, Mexican painter

David Alfaro Siqueiros David Alfaro Siqueiros (born José de Jesús Alfaro Siqueiros; December 29, 1896 – January 6, 1974) was a Mexican social realist painter, best known for his large public murals using the latest in equipment, materials and technique. Along with ...

, Italian film director

Michelangelo Antonioni Michelangelo Antonioni (, ; 29 September 1912 – 30 July 2007) was an Italian filmmaker. He is best known for directing his "trilogy on modernity and its discontents"—''L'Avventura'' (1960), ''La Notte'' (1961), and ''L'Eclisse'' (1962 ...

, Italian artist

Renato Guttuso Renato Guttuso (26 December 1911 – 18 January 1987) was an Italian painter and politician. His best-known works include ''Flight from Etna'' (1938–39), ''Crucifixion'' (1941) and ''La Vucciria'' (1974). Guttuso also designed for the theatre ( ...

William Saroyan William Saroyan (; August 31, 1908 – May 18, 1981) was an Armenian-American novelist, playwright, and short story writer. He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1940, and in 1943 won the Academy Award for Best Story for the film ''T ...

Tigran Mansuryan , native_name_lang = , birth_name = Tigran Yeghiayi Mansurian , alias = , birth_date = , birth_place = Beirut, Greater Lebanon , origin = Armenian SSR , death_date = , death_place = , gen ...

, and Aghasi Ayvazian. Recently, the museum has added works of many modern Armenian and international artists including Taline Zabounian (France), Sam Grigoryan (Germany), Harutyun Jinanyan "Jino" (Russia), Vatche Demirdjian (France), Lorent Nissou Soon (France), Christine Hagopian (France), Dibasar (France), Sharis Garabedian (France), Sebastiano (USA), Ziba Afshar (USA), Michael Gorman (USA), Garry John (USA), Karen Bistedt and Chris Brown (USA), Haik Mesropian (Switzerland), and Onik Atamyan (England).

Gallery

File:Museum of Modern Art in Armenia 1.jpg, File:Museum of Modern Art in Armenia 2.jpg, File:Museum of Modern Art in Armenia 3.jpg, File:Museum of Modern Art in Armenia 4.jpg, File:Museum of Modern Art in Armenia 5.jpg, File:Museum of Modern Art in Armenia 6.jpg, File:Vodern Art Museum, Erevan 12.jpg,

References

External links

* {{authority control Art museums and galleries in Armenia Museums in Yerevan 1972 establishments in Armenia Art museums established in 1972