Léon Gurekian (, ; 26 April 1871 in

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

2 September 1950 in

Asolo Asolo () is a town and ''comune'' in the Veneto, Veneto Region of northern Italy. It is known as "The Pearl of the province of Treviso", and also as "The City of a Hundred Horizons" for its mountain settings. It is one of I Borghi più belli d'It ...

) was an

Ottoman Armenian Armenians were a significant minority in the Ottoman Empire. They belonged to either the Armenian Apostolic Church, the Armenian Catholic Church, or the Armenian Protestant Church, each church serving as the basis of a millet. They played a ...

architect, writer and political activist. He was active in the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

and

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

Biography

Léon Gurekian, the son of Hovhannes Gurekian and Prapion Yeremian, was born in

on 26 April 1871. His Armenian family originated and resided in

Trebizond Trabzon, historically known as Trebizond, is a city on the Black Sea coast of northeastern Turkey and the capital of Trabzon Province. The city was founded in 756 BC as "Trapezous" by colonists from Miletus. It was added into the Achaemenid Em ...

and worked in business relations between the Middle East and Europe, especially

Marseille Marseille (; ; see #Name, below) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region. Situated in the ...

. He studied first in Trebizond before and completed studies at the

Mechitarist The Mechitarists, officially the Benedictine Congregation of the Mechitarists (), is an Armenian Catholic Church, Armenian Catholic monastic order of pontifical right for men founded in 1701 by Mkhitar Sebastatsi, Mekhitar of Sebaste. Members us ...

Moorat-Raphael College of Venice in 1888. He then went to Rome where he graduated in 1895 both from the "Regio Istituto di Belle Arti di Roma" with the Diploma of Professor of architectural design and from the "Regia Scuola di Applicazione degli Ingegneri" with a degree in architecture. He married Mariamik Azarian in 1901, in Constantinople. Their only son

Ohannés Gurekian Ohannés Gurekian (, ; August 24, 1902, in Constantinople – March 1, 1984, in Asolo) was an Armenian architect, engineer, and Alpinism, alpinist. Biography Early life and education Ohannés Gurekian, son of Léon Gurekian and Mariamik Azaria ...

was born in 1902 and was also architect.

Career

Bulgaria

Shortly after returning to Constantinople in 1896, he managed to escape the pogroms of the Armenians by the Sultan

Abdul Hamid II Abdulhamid II or Abdul Hamid II (; ; 21 September 184210 February 1918) was the 34th sultan of the Ottoman Empire, from 1876 to 1909, and the last sultan to exert effective control over the fracturing state. He oversaw a Decline and modernizati ...

by taking refuge in

. After getting his architecture degree recognized by the Bulgarian Government, he designed various buildings and won the

contest CONTEST is the United Kingdom's counter-terrorism strategy, first developed by Sir David Omand and the Home Office in early 2003 as the immediate response to 9/11, and a revised version was made public in 2006. Further revisions were publish ...

to design the Municipal Professional Theatre in

Varna Varna may refer to: Places Europe *Varna, Bulgaria, a city ** Varna Province ** Varna Municipality ** Gulf of Varna ** Lake Varna **Varna Necropolis * Vahrn, or Varna, a municipality in Italy * Varna (Šabac), a village in Serbia Asia * Var ...

which was later built with only slight modifications by Bulgarian architect Nikola Lazarov.

Constantinople

Returning to Constantinople in 1899, Gurekian designed numerous buildings in the town and on the islands of Prinkipo (Islands of Prince, Büyükada). During his period he had contacts with the architects of the

Balyan family The Balyan family (; ) was a prominent Armenians, Armenian family in the Ottoman Empire of court architects in the service of List of Sultans of the Ottoman Empire, Ottoman sultans and other members of the Ottoman dynasty during the 18th and 1 ...

, which family archive includes many original drawings and photos.Tigran Khzmalyan
''Armenian Architects of Istanbul: Online Exhibition''
27 March 2015 During this period Gurekian was also intensely politically active, publishing under a pseudonym in Armenian newspapers.

Italy

On 7 September 1907, he moved suddenly and without apparent explanation to

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

. In 1908 he obtained from the Regio Istituto di Belle Arti di Roma in Rome, the Diploma of Professor of Architectural Design, on the basis of his studies there in architecture in 1895. In 1911 he designed and built the Ottoman Pavilion to the International Exhibition in Turin. This is one of the only works he designed in Italy, the others being the funeral chapel of a friend of his in

Trieste Trieste ( , ; ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital and largest city of the Regions of Italy#Autonomous regions with special statute, autonomous region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, as well as of the Province of Trieste, ...

and his home - ''Villa Ararat'' - in

Treviso Treviso ( ; ; ) is a city and (municipality) in the Veneto region of northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Treviso and the municipality has 87.322 inhabitants (as of December 2024). Some 3,000 live within the Venetian wall ...

. In September 1911 he was appointed representative of the Ottoman Government to the International Congress of architects in Rome, but while there the

Italo-Turkish War The Italo-Turkish (, "Tripolitanian War", , "War of Libya"), also known as the Turco-Italian War, was fought between the Kingdom of Italy and the Ottoman Empire from 29 September 1911 to 18 October 1912. As a result of this conflict, Italy captur ...

arose and he participated as a regular member of the Association of Architects which was already part. Starting in 1911, and increasingly in subsequent years, he spent time in Asolo which was also the summer residence of the Armenian College in

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

. For several years from 1921 onwards, he went in vacation in Frassené in the province of

Belluno Belluno (; ; ) is a town and province in the Veneto region of northern Italy. Located about north of Venice, Belluno is the Capital (political), capital of the province of Belluno and the most important city in the Eastern Dolomites region. W ...

where the environment reminded him of Toz at Trebizond, where his family had a summer residence during his childhood. In 1912 he began a long project to survey important monuments of Byzantine and Romanesque Architecture in

Ravenna Ravenna ( ; , also ; ) is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the capital city of the Western Roman Empire during the 5th century until its Fall of Rome, collapse in 476, after which ...

Aquileia Aquileia is an ancient Roman city in Italy, at the head of the Adriatic at the edge of the lagoons, about from the sea, on the river Natiso (modern Natisone), the course of which has changed somewhat since Roman times. Today, the city is small ( ...

Istria Istria ( ; Croatian language, Croatian and Slovene language, Slovene: ; Italian language, Italian and Venetian language, Venetian: ; ; Istro-Romanian language, Istro-Romanian: ; ; ) is the largest peninsula within the Adriatic Sea. Located at th ...

Dalmatia Dalmatia (; ; ) is a historical region located in modern-day Croatia and Montenegro, on the eastern shore of the Adriatic Sea. Through time it formed part of several historical states, most notably the Roman Empire, the Kingdom of Croatia (925 ...

and especially in

Brianza Brianza (, ) is a geographical, historical and cultural area of Italy, at the foot of the Alps, in the northwest of Lombardy, between Milan and Lake Como. Geography Brianza extends from the Canzo area, North of Monza (approximately ...

with the aim of studying the influence of

Armenian Architecture Armenian architecture comprises architectural works with an aesthetic or historical connection to the Armenians, Armenian people. It is difficult to situate this architectural style within precise geographical or chronological limits, but many o ...

Romanesque Architecture Romanesque architecture is an architectural style of medieval Europe that was predominant in the 11th and 12th centuries. The style eventually developed into the Gothic style with the shape of the arches providing a simple distinction: the Ro ...

. This was in opposition to the thesis of G.T. Rivoira. From 19141918 the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

forced him to stay in Asolo where he made a living as a photographer. In 1919 he went to Paris where he published a political analysis of World War I in the form of an animal allegory: "''The Responsible''". While there he also participated in political efforts towards the constitution of the Independent Republic of Armenia. In 1922, becoming bitterly aware of the impossibility of returning to what would be the Independent Armenian Republic given the failure of the

Treaty of Versailles The Treaty of Versailles was a peace treaty signed on 28 June 1919. As the most important treaty of World War I, it ended the state of war between Germany and most of the Allies of World War I, Allied Powers. It was signed in the Palace ...

(1919), he decided to settle in Asolo and designed and built his home there. From that moment, he totally abandoned architecture. He published a series of political and philological studies, mostly in the Armenian language. In "''

Kars Kars ( or ; ; ) is a city in northeast Turkey. It is the seat of Kars Province and Kars District.� ...

and

Ardahan Ardahan ( ka, არტაანი, tr; ; Russian: Ардаган) is a city in northeastern Turkey, near the Georgian border. It is the seat of Ardahan Province and Ardahan District.Léon Gurekian, ''Կարս եւ Արտահան'' (Kars e Ardahan), Venezia 1949, Tipografia di S. Lazzaro degli Armeni he put forward the Armenian claim to those provinces, which were ceded to Turkey in the

Treaty of Alexandropol The Treaty of Alexandropol (; or "Gyumri Treaty") was a peace treaty between the First Republic of Armenia and the Grand National Assembly of Turkey. The treaty ended the Turkish–Armenian War that had begun on 12 September 1920, with the Turki ...

. At the end of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

a Delegation of the Soviet Armenian Republic went to Asolo to ask Gurekian if he was willing to move to Armenia. Being already sick he refused, but stated in support of that cause that: ''behind me there was always a photograph of General Antranik'' (

Andranik Ozanian Andranik Ozanian, commonly known as General Andranik or simply Andranik (25 February 186531 August 1927), was an Armenian military commander and statesman, the best known '' fedayi'' and a key figure of the Armenian national liberation movem ...

). He died in Asolo on 2 September 1950 and was buried in family grave.

Architectural Contributions

Bulgaria 1896-1898

* 1897 ** Casino - Kasorlik ** Agricultural Cash and Savings - Sofia and other cities ** Villa - Sofia ** Villa of the ing. Nicolof - Sofia * 1898 ** Theater in Varna - competition (first prize)

Ottoman Empire 1898-1907

* 1898 ** Armenian Church - Trazbon ** Accommodation of Sisters - Samsoun ** Church Our Lady of Lourdes of Georgian Fathers - Constantinople * 1899 ** Dwelling Mndighian - Constantinople ** Home of Ghiridli Moustafa Pacha - Sultan Ammed - Constantinople ** Palace of the Grand Vizir Halil Riphath, Pacha - Nichan Tachy - Constantinople ** Villa Hilmi view Bey - Bebek - Constantinople * 1900 ** Apartments Munif Pacha - Constantinople ** Apartments Ibraïm Bey Effendi - Constantinople ** Pavilion for Rachid Pacha - Balta Limar - Constantinople ** Palace (S)aleddin Pacha - Constantinople ** Palace Hairiz - Constantinople ** Palace and pavilions Hassan Pacha - Constantinople ** Palace Kemaleddine Pacha - Constantinople ** Palace and Guard House Moustafa Bey on the Bosphorus - Hissar - Constantinople ** Villa Candilli - Constantinople ** Villa Moustafa Bey - Prinkipo ** Villa Sami Pacha - Constantinople * 1903 ** Villa Agopian - Prinkipo ** Apartments Joseph Azarian - Ayaz Pacha (today ) - Constantinople * 1904 ** Apartments Rosenthal - Constantinople ** Houses in S. Hagop (10 houses) - Constantinople ** Accommodation gardens Azarian - Pendik * 1905 ** Apartments Gurekian (two buildings) - Pangalti Rue Pariaz - Constantinople ** Dwelling Chahbaz Maksoud - Chichli - Constantinople * 1906 ** Apartments E. Schahnazar - Constantinople ** Apartments Léon Gurekian - Constantinople - Ayaz Pacha ** Apartments Coumbaradji - Constantinople ** Funerary chapel Yeranouhi Keutcheyan - Constantinople * Undated ** Dwelling Karamanian - Constantinople ** Dwelling Vedat Bey - Constantinople ** Dwelling Vefik Bey - Constantinople ** Apartments Yechil - Constantinople ** Apartments Karamanian - Constantinople ** Apartments Macsoud Bey - Asman Bey - Constantinople ** Apartments Manouelian - Chichli - Constantinoplev ** Apartments Perouz Agha - Constantinople

Italy 1908-1950

* 1911 ** Pavilion of the Ottoman Empire at the International Exhibition - Torino * 1913 ** Funerary chapel family Aïdinian - Trieste * 1924 ** Villa Ararat - Asolo (Treviso)

Publications

* Léon Gurekian, ''Il Concilio Cattolico Armeno di Roma, Considerazioni di un Patriota Armeno'', Conti e Gandolfi, Sanremo 1912 - (in Italian) * Léon Gurekian, ''The centenary of a couple of poets , Centenary of the birth of

Robert Browning Robert Browning (7 May 1812 – 12 December 1889) was an English poet and playwright whose dramatic monologues put him high among the Victorian literature, Victorian poets. He was noted for irony, characterization, dark humour, social commentar ...

and

Elizabeth Barrett Browning Elizabeth Barrett Browning (née Moulton-Barrett; 6 March 1806 – 29 June 1861) was an English poet of the Victorian era, popular in Britain and the United States during her lifetime and frequently anthologised after her death. Her work receiv ...

(Քերթող Ամոլի մը Հարիւրամեակը, Ռոբերտ Բրաւնինգի Ծննդեան Հարիւրամեակը եւ Եղիսաբէթ Բառռէտ-Բրաւնինգ)'', Scant, Ghalatia 1912 - (in Armenian) * Léon Gurekian, ''L'Armenia nell'anima italiana'', C.Colombo, Roma 1919 - (in Italian) * Léon Gurekian, ''Le Responsable - Allégorie historique dans le Règne Animal'', Jouve & C.ie Éditeurs, Paris 1919 - (in French) * Léon Gurekian, ''The two-thousandth of

Virgil Publius Vergilius Maro (; 15 October 70 BC21 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Rome, ancient Roman poet of the Augustan literature (ancient Rome), Augustan period. He composed three of the most fa ...

(Վիրգիլեան երկհազարամեակը)'', San Lazzaro, Venezia 1931 - (in Armenian) * Léon Gurekian, ''Primo Centenario della Fondazione del Collegio Armeno Moorat-Raphaël'', Venezia (1836/1936), G.Fabris, Venezia 1936 - (in Italian) * Léon Gurekian, ''

Kars Kars ( or ; ; ) is a city in northeast Turkey. It is the seat of Kars Province and Kars District.� ...

Ardahan Ardahan ( ka, არტაანი, tr; ; Russian: Ардаган) is a city in northeastern Turkey, near the Georgian border. It is the seat of Ardahan Province and Ardahan District.Gurekian Family

''Léon Gurekian architetto'' (Armen Gurekian, Asolo 2010)

Asolo

Bibliography

* Unione degli Studenti Armeni d'Italia, ''Indipendenza Armena, celebrata in Asolo, 20 agosto 1920'', Tipografia del Seminario, Padova 1921 * Armen Gurekian, ''Léon Gurekian architetto'', Asolo 2010 * Agop Manoukian, ''Presenza Armena in Italia, 1915-2000'', Guerrini e Associati, Milano 2014 * Prando Prandi, ''La mia Asolo'', Duck Edizioni, Castelfranco Veneto 2014,

Exhibitions

National Museum-Institute of Architecture of Armenia
- Yerevan (Armenia), Léon Gurekian architect, 15 Mars - 15 May 2015 *

Vanadzor Vanadzor (, ) is an urban municipal community and the third largest city in Armenia, serving as the capital of Lori Province in the northern part of the country. It is located about north of the capital Yerevan. As of the 2011 census, the city h ...

(Armenia), Léon Gurekian architect, 3 October - 20 December 2015 {{DEFAULTSORT:Gurekian, Leon Ethnic Armenian architects Armenians from the Ottoman Empire Emigrants from the Ottoman Empire to Italy 1871 births 1950 deaths