Mountains 1961

Martiros Sarian created this drawing of mountains using pencil and crayon, achieving a textured interplay between line and form. The composition guides us from the detailed foreground, where a village sits nestled, to the layered mountains in the distance. The artist uses a semiotic language of marks: short, repetitive strokes define the rugged terrain, while sparse red crayon highlights suggest warmth and habitation. This dual-toned approach destabilizes a conventional reading of landscape, instead offering a structural interpretation of space and depth. The mountains are not merely represented, but constructed through a network of lines and planes. Notice how the varying density of the pencil strokes creates a sense of atmospheric perspective. This technique functions not just aesthetically, but also philosophically, prompting questions about how we perceive and categorize the natural world. The artwork becomes a site for ongoing interpretation, inviting us to consider the relationship between representation and reality.