It is very sad to see how great Armenians are passing away one after another and forming a large majority…They leave behind the memories of them and their values with which we must try to appreciate what is inside of our soul and our achievements…

Ara Shiraz was one of the most remarkable figures in Armenian sculpting. He was a unique and powerful individual who came on to the scene in the mid-1960s and became one of the pioneers of his generation. The 1960s saw the emergence of form and content, the art of sharp discrepancies in terms of ideas and the shaping of new approaches to fine arts, expanding form in painting and sculpting and defining new styles. Ara Shiraz was amongst all that, in the focal point of all innovative movements because he simply had to be a part of the interesting struggle against the conventional, socialist realism. For Ara Shiraz and his contemporaries, the important thing was fresh ideas and the affirmation of new solutions. Form was being turned into an idea and was dictating the emphasis on idea and emotions.

Ara Shiraz was born in 1941 to the family of Hovhannes Shiraz and Silva Kaputikyan. Hovhannes Shiraz and Silva Kaputikyan divorced later because it seemed as though the two powerful individuals couldn’t live together, but Ara served as the bridge that linked them. Ara became Hovhannes Shiraz’s most beloved son out of all his other sons and became his friend. After the passing away of Hovhannes Shiraz, Ara gathered his brothers and sisters and became not only their brother, but also their father and mentor. Hovhannes Shiraz confessed that he had always dreamed of becoming a sculptor and had even created several sculptures, but poetry captivated him. Hovhannes Shiraz’s first son turned his dreams into a reality and became Ara Shiraz the sculptor, introducing his two brothers to the world of sculpting.

Ara Shiraz’s first sculpture that immediately drew professionals’ attention was the sculpture entitled “Antuni” (Homeless), which was general, symbolic and was devoted to Komitas. The conditional and the symbolic prevailed. The sculpture was uniquely expressed and there was some lyricism. After this, Shiraz went on to create “Nerbogh” (Eulogy), “Vahanov Kine” (Woman with the Shield) and others. As Ara Shiraz matured in the 1970s, he wanted to see variety and authenticity and created the busts of “William Saroyan”, “Pablo Picasso”, “Hrachya Nersisyan” and “Fidayi”. He also fell in love with monumental, monumental-decorative sculpting and created the busts of Paruyr Sevak and Yeghishe Charents. The first, monumental work of the sculptor was the sculpture of Alexander Myasnikyan created with architect Jim Torosian. The incessant figure with his look toward the homeland amazed everyone with his “crude” expressionism. The sculptor didn’t go into details, but turned the inner force and centralization of the “original” into a primary goal.

Later, Ara Shiraz stayed true to his style and created the busts of Andranik Ozanyan, Mher Mkrtchyan, Hovhannes Shiraz, Sergey Parajanov and others. The statue of Mher Mkrtchyan in front of Vardan Atchemyan Theater in Gyumri is interesting. It expresses the great actor’s tragedy and his view on art. Ara Shiraz’s bas relief for Dvin Hotel was unique and helped him receive the State Award of the Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic. The statue of Andranik Ozanyan on his two horses is also one of the unique samples in Armenian sculpting. This sculpture is amazing with its inner force and unique expression.

Ara Shiraz was truly a great Armenian sculptor, an artist who continued the traditions established by Ara Sargsyan and Yervand Kochar and became one of them with his searches and affirmations…

Levon Mutafyan