Bahruz Kangarli - one of first professional representatives of Azerbaijani visual arts, founder of realistic easel painting of Azerbaijan

Baku, May 14, AZERTAC Kangarli Bahruz Shiralibay (1892-1922) - a painter and graphic artist, was one of the first professional representatives of Azerbaijani visual arts and the founder of realistic easel painting of Azerbaijan. He was born on in the city of Nakhchivan, one of the oldest cultural centers of not only Azerbaijan but also the Caucasus region. He studied at the School of Painting and Sculpture attached to the Caucasus Art Tashviq Society in Tbilisi (1910-1915). Kangarli drew a lot of portraits, landscapes, still live works etc. that became attracted with its realist expressions and high literary-esthetic value. Bahruz Kangarli's works in portrait genre play a special role in his artistic heritage. The artist's portrait works are of realistic characteristic for their artistic form, image resolution, creative method and expression style. Kangarli, who mastered the basic features of realistic portrait art, succeeded in raising the portrait to the level of artistic image. His portraits of the present popular educated figures and simple people’s (“Old man”, “Georgian” etc.) differs with subject topicality and the aliveness and reality of the portraits of a man, woman, boy and a girl who belong to the group of “Refugees” and its psychological expression, which is one of the important issues of present social-political issues. The professional artist was able to create the great examples of children portraits. In the pictures included in the "Sleeping Child" series, Bahruz Kangarli described the purity and innocence of the children. The total number of the works included in this series is about 30. The artist's works in portrait genre included in the series of "Refugees", which reflect painful moments of history are of particular importance. The “Refugees” series is composed of up to 30 paintings painted in water-colour. Bahruz Kangarli is a true patriot painter who conveyed the realities of his time to the present, decently fulfilled his civic duty to his people. Kangarli, with his works included in the series of "Refugees", which reflect the injustices that our nation suffered, proves to be a genuine nationalist artist of his nation. Kangarli's works "The abandoned house" (1921), "The Nakhchivan devastations", "The ruins in Nakhchivan" (1921) and the "Destroyed gate in Eylabad village" (1921) reflecting ruins in Nakhchivan are of special importance. The majority of the works included in the artistic heritage of Bahruz Kangarli are landscapes. The landscapes contain great part in his creative activity. The natural beauties (“Shalab”, “Mountainous view”, Ilanlidagh in the moonlight”, “Sunset”, “Aghridagh”, “Old fortress”, “Gate in Aliabad village”, “Road to Yamkhana village”, “Ashabi-kahf mountain” etc.), the cultural monuments (“Momuna Khatun Tomb”), the seasons (“Autumn”, “Spring”) are reflected in his landscapes. The artist created valuable works of art by describing the architectural monuments of the Middle Ages, which is an indication of the ancient history of Azerbaijan, its magnificent statehood. In 1921, at the first great exhibition in Azerbaijan, Kangarli’s more than 500 works were exhibited. His works are kept at the State Art Museum of Azerbaijan, Nakhchivan State Museum of History, Moscow State Museum of History and private collections. On May 22, 2001, Bahruz Kangarli Museum was established in Nakhchivan by the decision of the Supreme Assembly of Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic.