Flowers 1916

Martiros Sarian painted "Flowers" using oils to create this still life. The visible brushwork reminds us of the physical act of painting. Sarian isn’t trying to trick us into thinking we're looking at real flowers. Instead, we're invited to consider the paint itself. The texture and density of the oil paint contribute to the overall visual experience. Thick daubs of paint capture light and shadow, giving the flowers depth and volume, which reflects the labor and the artist's touch. The paint is applied in a way that emphasizes the materiality of the medium itself. By focusing on the paint and the act of painting, Sarian blurs the lines between representation and abstraction, challenging traditional ideas about what art should be. In the end, "Flowers" is as much about the stuff it is made of as the image it represents.