Beschreibung:

Marcos Grigorian (Iran, 1925-2007)Garni straw, resin, mud and mixed media compound on board signed "Grigorian", dated "2001", inscribed "Garni Armenia" on the verso, executed in 2001 61 x 61cm (24 x 24in).FootnotesProvenance: Property from a private collection, Los Angeles "This square grid, a sacred measurement in art, is associated with stability. It is an iconographic symbol of the earth. Grigorian has personalised the form by physically and psychologically identifying the square with four walls of a room in his living space, he even called his first exhibition of Earthworks "My First Home"" - Donna Stein Garni is part of Grigorian's acclaimed Earthworks Series. Earthworks were inspired by the use of materials and forms that went beyond the conventional means of art-making. Compared to the Western Land Artists, who similarly created compositions through the handling of earth itself, Grigorian predated this movement by a decade. Born to Armenian parents in 1925, Grigorian was brought up in Russia for a short time before emigrating to Iran with his family at the age of five. After studying at Kamal-el-Molk Art School in Tehran, he moved to Rome to complete his studies at the Academia di Bella Arti in the 1950s. His move to Rome allowed him to study the works of classical and modern masters and was a turning point in his career. His subsequent moves to Iran and then to the United States in the later years of his career were to be equally influential to his artistic development. His early abstract style was supplanted by expressionist figurative compositions on his return to Iran in 1954. In 1962 he moved to New York where he began his most famous Earthworks Series. These works are mostly on a square format, which became something of a signature for Grigorian. The square form was a representation of sacred geometry and harmonious proportions. The organic materials such as hay, straw, sand, soil and clay which he used to create his almost three-dimensional compositions were to be equally defining. In experimenting with soil and mud, he believed he was rebuilding life and exploring the complex relationship between mankind and earth. The present work is reminiscent of the commonly held theory that the Earth and the other planets developed over millions of years out of particles and gas. The traces of a convergent movement towards the centre of the canvas evoke the image of the universe forming out of primordial dust - and the monochrome earthy surface impress upon the viewer the feeling of a distant aerial view from space. The textured surface and the play between light and shadow endow the painting with an even more dramatic effect, adding to its three-dimensionality.