Hakop Hovnatanian (1806-1881)

Portrait of Shushanik Nadiryan

 The art of the celebrated Hovnatanian family who had been active for nearly two hundred years became a link between the medieval miniature and modern painting. Particularly brilliant was Hakop Hovnatanian who depicted a collective image of 19th century Armenian society in unique canvases, such as the portraits of Teumian, Nadirian, His Holiness Nerses V Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians and Naser al-Din Shah was painted twice by Hakob Hovnatanian, also he painted Mozaffar al-Din as crown prince.He was one of the first Armenian artists, who in his paintings are not covered religious topics, which were key in the Armenian fine arts for many years.

Detail from Portrait of Shushanik Nadiryan, 1850, 80x64 cm, Oil Colour on Canvas

Source
Art Gallery of Armenia, Yerevan by  Hayastani Petakan Patkerasrah, Martin Mikaelian - Aurora Art Publishers, 1984 - 159 pages