The College of Arts and Humanities and the University Lecture Series are collaborating on events to mark the life and legacy of Arshile Gorky, the abstract expressionist painter, most of whose work was done in New York.

The campus connection is part of the Gorky Festival undertaken by the Fresno Art Museum.

Gorky, born Vostanik Manoog Adoyan in 1904 in Turkey, sought refuge in the United States after his father fled Turkey to avoid military service and his mother died of starvation during the Armenian Genocide.

He studied in Boston before settling in New York, where he became a painter, whose work has gained a substantial reputation since his death in 1948.

The Fresno State Department of Art and Design presents an exhibition of student art inspired by Gorky's art and life from April 6 (Thursday) through 27 at City Hall in downtown Fresno. The exhibit is coordinated by Nick Potter, an assistant professor of drawing and painting. City Hall is open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Friday.

The Department of Music has scheduled a concert at 8 p.m. April 17 in the Concert Hall. Music from Armenia and tunes popular during the time he spent in New York during the 1920s-’40s are on the program coordinated by Dr. Maria Amirkhanian, a lecturer in music.

On April 18, the Department of Art and Design presents “Arshile Gorky: Why Abstraction,” a lecture by Dr. Laura Meyer, an assistant professor of art history. The lecture begins at 4 p.m. in the Conley Lecture Hall.

At 7:30 that evening in the Satellite Student Union, Gorky biographer Nouritza Matossian will present an illustrated talk, “A Case of Mistaken Identity: Why Arshile Gorky Changed His Name.” The discussion is part of the University Lecture Series.

Tickets cost $10 general admission; $6 Fresno State faculty/staff/Alumni Association/seniors/other students; and $2 Fresno State students. On the day of the event, prices increase by $2 for all buyers except Fresno State students.

Matossian’s dramatization, “Black Angel: The Double Life of Arshile Gorky,” will be performed at 8 p.m. April 19 in the Satellite Student Union. Matossian’s words are accompanied by Armenian music and projected images of Gorky’s art.
 

For more Fresno State news, click on the following links:

• Department of Art and Design Faculty Site

• University Lecture Series

• Arshile Gorky