On the history of studying of medieval Armenian fresco painting

Abstract

The history of studying of Armenian medieval monumental painting, which covers the only one 20th century, is being analyzed in the article. Researchers of this important branch of the fine arts of Armenia were started comparatively late. The reasons which have been indicated were historical and political circumstances in the country, which for many centuries had been deprived of statehood; a fragmentary state of preservation of the artistic material; and as well as an erroneous ideas about the negative attitude of the Armenian Church to the images, which had coming from the Middle Ages. This errancy is existing in the modern times, even in the scientific community. The author traces the main stages in the study of the Armenian wall painting: from the first works of the Ani archaeological campaigns participants, on the borderline of the 19th and 20th centuries — to the activities of three outstanding scientists — L. A. Durnovo (1885–1963), S. Der Nersessian (1896–1989) and N. G. Kotanjyan (1928–2013). The history of art owes these people the existence of a holistic view of the medieval monumental painting of Armenia. Profound study of both the frescoes themselves and the medieval written sources related to them gave the possibility to these scientists to demonstrate the main development ways of Armenian mural painting, to reveal the artistic directions and peculiar national features of it; to determine the features of decorative programs and iconographic options, as well as the specific properties of Armenian prime coating under the murals and frescoes painting technique. The contribution of each of these scientists to the study of the monumental painting of medieval Armenia has been individually estimated.