The Central Bank of Armenia issued a silver commemorative coin dedicated to The 125th Alexander Bazhbeuk-Melikian’s birth on 25th of January 2016

Alexander Bazhbeuk-Melikian (1891-1966) is an Armenian painter, People’s Artist of Soviet Georgia.Bazhbeuk-Melikian was born in Tiflis (Tbilisi, Georgia). He studied first at the Tiflis School of Painting and Sculpture and then at the St Petersburg Academy of Arts. In the period from 1929 to 1938 he lectured at the Academy of Fine Arts in Tbilisi. Bazhbeuk-Melikian’s early works, such as “Three Figures”, “Optical Illusion”, and “Shooting Gallery”, were characterized by dark colors and subtle forms.

In 1930-1940s the painter’s palette took more light and color: pink, light green, yellow, bright red dominated in the paintings such as “A Courtyard in Peski”, "A Group of Women with a Mirror”, “The Nude Lyda”. In the works “The Nude”, “Lyda with Her Hands Lifted Up” and others the colors were even brighter, reaching glossy, near-gold tinge.

In 1950-1960s, the color in Bazhbeuk-Melikian’s paintings became materialistic and lively (“Swing”, “A Female Juggler”). Portraits of women take a special place in Bazhbeuk-Melikian’s art. The paintings “Nazeli Teryan”, “Lavinia”, “Viola” as well as compositions with pictures of women, such as “Bathers” and “A Group of Circus Actors” are a good example of the artist’s direct perception of emotional world of the poser. In them, we can see that individual features are stressed while colors are juicy.Landscapes of Armenia created by Bazhbeuk-Melikian are noteworthy as well.The artist’s works are kept in the Georgian Museum of Fine Arts, the National Gallery of Armenia, and in private collections.

Face value is 100 drams. The coins are made of 925 fine silver; the size is 28.0х40.0 mm and weight—28.28 grams. Colored paints were used for the coin production.

Source of information: Central Bank of Armenia www.cba.am