Lot 136: HAGOP HAGOPIAN (Hakob Hakobyan) (1923- ), Armenian

HAGOP HAGOPIAN (Hakob Hakobyan) (1923- ), Armenian former Soviet Union WOMEN; Oil on canvas; signed and dated 2001 lower right 40.5" x 30" - 102.9 x 76.2 cm.

Exhibited:Agora Gallery, New York, October 24 to November 13, 2008, Cat. no. 3

Daughter of the artist, Toronto

Note:The motif of this human-like form began appearing in Hagopian's artwork in the early 1990's. Both male and female, the intimate reticulated box- wood mannequins are made "living" through active gestures and interactions on the canvas. The mannequins serve to personify the diversity of human relations and emotions engendered by these relations. Hagopian's mannequins are seen in states of love, rivalry, conflict and dance with the purpose of displaying what the artist considers to be the most essential in nature - the impulses of the human soul. In casting aside specific personal and cultural details, the mannequins embody universal truths and themes of human experience.