Karmravor. Ashtarak 1987

Petros Malayan made Karmravor, Ashtarak with what looks like oil paint, and the way the colours blend and bleed, it's like the memory of a place rather than a photograph of it. See how the paint’s been applied in thin washes, almost like watercolor in places, but then built up into these more solid, blocky forms? Look at the way the sky is heavy with blues, while the church itself seems to be emerging from the earth in ochres and browns. It’s not about precision, but about feeling, you know? The shapes are simplified, and there’s a kind of roughness to the texture that feels really immediate and heartfelt. Malayan reminds me a little of Milton Avery, in the way he simplifies forms and uses colour to create mood. I think he's trying to capture the essence of the place, rather than just its appearance. It’s about how places hold onto our histories and emotions.