Constantinople 1910

Martiros Sarian made this painting, Constantinople, with oil on canvas and a distinctive approach to color. It's not about capturing a scene so much as creating a feeling through vibrant, somewhat dissonant color combinations. Look at how the colors clash and sing at the same time. The deep blues, reds and browns are applied in broad strokes that create a rich, textured surface. You can almost feel the energy of the artist's hand moving across the canvas. Take that blue dog for example. It's a single mass of dark blue, with just enough variation to suggest form and movement. It's as though the artist is more interested in the idea of a dog than a literal representation of one. Sarian, like his contemporary Matisse, knew that the real subject of painting is often the act of painting itself. And it is this conversation between the visible world and the artist’s inner vision that I find so exciting and ambiguous.