Mıgırdiç Civanyan Click for Artist Information

Mıgırdiç Civanyan

Armenian-Ottoman painter Mıgırdiç Civanyan is one of the first bohemians of Ottoman modernism. He was born in Beşiktaş in 1848. His father, Ohannes Civanyan, is a court violinist. He received his painting education from Abraham Sakaryan. He continued his education at the academy opened by the French painter Pierre Desire Guillemet in Beyoğlu, and during this period he met Ayvazovski and was influenced by his art. He went to Italy in 1876 and studied painting for 3 years. After returning to Istanbul, he participated in the exhibition of the Elifba club with 4 works. He married an Italian woman in 1885, but his wife passed away 4 years later. He went to Odessa in 1894 after the Hamidiye events. He returned to Istanbul after 10 years and passed away a short time later.