Արտիստը [Artiste]

Shirvanzade’s “The Artist” is a novel which perfectly describes the depth of Levon's soul and his artistic temperament. Whilst this is not a story about the artistic personality, it is rather the story of talent and youth falling victim to the obstacles, the unpredictability and the accidents of life.

The novel charms the reader with its gentle description of teenage Levon, passionate about the opera, theatre and music. Possessed of a tender sensibility and creativity he is however trapped into circumstances inimical to his ambitions. In Levon's mother, a rather weak, perhaps broken woman, Shirvanzade encapsulates well some of the plebeian hostility to the artistic character often seen as good for nothings incapable of putting bread on the table