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Artists

Arshile Gorky

b. Khorkom, Turkey, 1904
d. Sherman, CT, 1948

Born as Vostanik Manoug Adoian, Arshile Gorky fled the Ottoman Empire in 1915 during the Armenian genocide and arrived in the United States in 1920. Reinventing himself as an artist, Gorky took painting lessons in Boston and New York. His early works include painted interpretations of a childhood photograph picturing the artist and his mother. Throughout the 1940s, Gorky found inspiration in pastoral Hamilton, Virginia, where he translated his surroundings into a unique visual language. Drawing, 1943, from Glenstone’s collection, exemplifies the emotive impressions he captured through vibrant fields of color. Lines dance across the canvas, evoking the energy of an animated, verdant landscape.

–Elijah Majeski, from the Glenstone Field Guide

Artworks by Arshile Gorky