Old Yerevan, Kond 1991

Petros Malayan made ‘Old Yerevan, Kond’ using paint, probably on canvas, and with love, I'd guess! I can imagine him outside, looking at these buildings, trying to get them down, the way they huddle together. The paint's not too thick, but it’s not washy either. More like he’s pushing it around, finding the shapes in layers, you know? That tree on the side—look at how the branches reach up! It's like the tree is as much the subject as the buildings. I wonder if he was thinking about how things grow and change, how the old makes way for the new? You can see him building up the tones, light over dark, dark over light. It makes you think about other painters who loved cities, like the Impressionists. You can tell he really cared about this place, Kond, and wanted to capture it before it disappeared.