https://www.sergeisaakian.com/artist-statement daily 0.75 2021-03-09 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611419504810-90WMZ2CE78U2I5ZXJUL0/IMG_2915.jpg Artist Statement “Though as an artist I was educated in an art school with a strong classical tradition and canon, I was always looking for ways to change my approach to classical painting and create another reality through my works rather than recreate the world around me. I was never much interested in putting on canvas objects and stories that I see, be it Makhachkala, Moscow, or New York. The essence of the artistic process to me is in reimagining reality or in fantasizing another world that might be inspired by real events or my memories, but does not rely on their reenactment. The experience of coming of age in an ethnically diverse Makhachkala situated between the sea and the mountains of the North Caucasus largely influenced my way into art and has affected my experimenting with paints, colors, themes and the technique of my works. Later during my studies and life in Russia, I was getting my inspiration from the artists of the Leningrad art school of the 1920-1940s, especially Andrey Mylnikov and Evsey Moiseenko. My migration experience has also reverberated my practice, mostly the way I revisit some scenes and landscapes from my childhood by turning them into unreachable, slightly dreamlike lands. However, my works aren’t based on nostalgia and dwelling on the past - I would describe myself as a curious artist constantly looking for my own changing artistic language and moved by the ability of art to always surprise us - both audiences and artists.” -Sergei Saakian https://www.sergeisaakian.com/home-1 daily 1.0 2021-01-28 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611856844647-ESP6TTXDP9SFFGB0PFTS/IMG_3832.jpg Home - Sergei Saakian (1959) is a USSR-born NYC-based visual artist, working primarily in painting and drawing. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611857945453-7Q9OKL1TNBXQHQSTA1AW/IMG_2836.jpg Home https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611858190572-I7A206EBAFLILYD7UIAS/IMG_2897.jpg Home https://www.sergeisaakian.com/contact daily 0.75 2021-01-23 https://www.sergeisaakian.com/home daily 0.75 2021-01-23 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5cfc0197cd000900016c6cc2/1560034751694-9QN74GBDMOK5ZQ5EGI1F/image-asset.jpeg Home https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5cfc0197cd000900016c6cc2/1560463580551-XH26U6T95F8S5OG1GI74/project-7.jpg Home https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5cfc0197cd000900016c6cc2/1561655249795-773XH192WPN8U9U9AZMS/project-5.jpg Home https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5cfc0197cd000900016c6cc2/1561654369730-4BWJ6VFCJAVS79A4FWDZ/project-4.jpg Home https://www.sergeisaakian.com/about daily 0.75 2025-06-25 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611418874454-Z9X6KJI6ZBB9E6YRS00X/IMG_2689+%281%29.jpg About the Artist Sergei Saakian (1959) is a USSR-born NYC-based visual artist, working primarily in painting and drawing. Sergei grew up in Makhachkala, the capital of Soviet Dagestan, where his Armenian grandparents had moved to in the 1930s from the disputed area of Nagorny Karabach. As a teenager, Sergei wasn’t particularly invested into arts, until at the age of 16 an insightful visit to an artist’s studio forever changed his perspective about his future professional pursuit and passion. In 1975 he entered Art College in Makhachkala, where he studied interior design. Upon honorary graduation, Sergei worked at the Art Union for Dagestan as an interior designer and artist with an aspiration to get further art education in Moscow. In 1982 Sergei enrolled in the Graphics department of the leading USSR art school of the time - The Surikov Art Institute in Moscow. He later switched to the Painting department where he studied under the supervision of renowned artist Tair Salakhov and graduated with honors in 1989. While at the Art Institute, he participated in a number of international exhibitions and art competitions at different venues in Moscow and internationally, including two group shows in the Moscow Manege and an international artist competition in Tokyo, where he won the 3d prize. For the next few years, before the collapse of the Soviet Union, Sergei lived in Moscow and worked as a freelance artist. As the political situation in the country was rapidly changing many artists of the time were looking for ways to emigrate in search of more developed art markets and greater professional opportunities that Moscow of the early 1990s couldn’t offer to young artists. In 1990, as the borders fully opened and traveling became easier, Sergei left for NYC, and after a year he decided to stay there for good. Being an émigré artist new to the local art scene and looking for a professional occupation, for the first few years Sergei worked as a no-name artist for a commercial gallery, where, according to the contract, he couldn’t sign his works with his own name. Over the three years with the gallery Serge created a large amount of works that were selling fast and were in high demand by private collectors and art lovers. In the mid-1990s, in order to support his family, he started his interior contracting business but never stopped working as an artist - he was constantly creating new works - drawings, paintings, sketches. In 2017 Sergei decided to focus solely on his artistic practice. Since then he has become a member of the BWAC Brooklyn Waterfront Artist Coalition, and Salmagundi Club. He has been exhibiting his works at various shows in both institutions. In 2025 Sergei had a solo exhibition at the BWAC titled Dreamscapes: Reimagining What Was Left Behind. Sergei blended personal memory with imagination, re-envisioning the landscapes and figures of his childhood in Dagestan. Through subtle abstraction and vivid imagery, his works explored the shifting nature of memory and identity, reflecting on how the places and people we leave behind continue to resonate within us. https://www.sergeisaakian.com/collections-1 daily 0.75 2023-03-12 https://www.sergeisaakian.com/collections-1/project-six-lex9t monthly 0.5 2021-01-28 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611962408567-3ZX3GVNRVBOAR4MZO21N/IMG_3253.jpg Collections - Sketches https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611961527148-ECPYPSLKI51M38W3LMEN/IMG_2801.jpg Collections - Sketches https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611961610647-I314NMV31C2FPU9F47WJ/IMG_3435.jpg Collections - Sketches https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611962490713-HER8MBW58FYNSJ0WDCWI/IMG_3809.jpg Collections - Sketches https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611961897114-EE8AC9VDY42TA6IVY8KZ/IMG_3428.jpg Collections - Sketches https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611962022916-Y7OAUT7VGMG6HKLPIWDK/IMG_3429.jpg Collections - Sketches https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611962064913-92TC4NIUZEXNPNNOFOR2/IMG_3813.jpg Collections - Sketches https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611960255952-SEZ768NFB2HVCP1QNWAX/IMG_2263.jpg Collections - Sketches https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611962205146-MY6L08QSCYWPDFLRQEI7/IMG_0143.jpg Collections - Sketches https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611960593026-SJVLDOU36JTE1NGJGTBR/IMG_2785.jpg Collections - Sketches https://www.sergeisaakian.com/collections-1/project-five-x9rfh monthly 0.5 2021-01-28 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611957972840-LH68NKP6NUDJMW7PLSLA/IMG_3676.jpg Collections - Graphics Cheerful Day. 8’’x8’’. Pastel. 1990. Moscow https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1613231673760-IVFL34HQR7CKTM9I2DZQ/IMG_3850.jpg Collections - Graphics Visiting the Mother. 6’’x 5.75’’. 2020. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611957909403-HHMNBPY6EV5UM24Y9NZA/IMG_3672.jpg Collections - Graphics Pleasant Day. 6’’x9’’. Pastel. 2016. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1613231625855-N87LPRP844R2BANAMFIT/IMG_3865.jpg Collections - Graphics Afternoon. 5.75’’x6.75’’. Watercolor. 2021. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611958000181-37XV2JDFNUJGHTFSQ56M/IMG_3675.jpg Collections - Graphics Laundry. 6’’x9’’. Pastel. 1990. Moscow https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1613231718690-YF2A7B45EXT82H11M66Q/IMG_3898.jpg Collections - Graphics Woman at the Arch. 6’’x4’’. 1997. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611957877716-PSQ8CNNLAM69CH97SF90/IMG_3671.jpg Collections - Graphics Sunny Day. 6’’x6’’. Pastel. 2016. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611957942575-LOCYUNNI17SGMKOMN3B5/IMG_3673.jpg Collections - Graphics Conversation. 5’’x7’’. Pastel. 1996. New York https://www.sergeisaakian.com/collections-1/project-four-n5g5f monthly 0.5 2021-01-28 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611941912390-14SXR1O848VM3B7IOWMW/k.jpg Collections - Landscapes Glimpse. 45’’x47’’. Oil on Canvas. 2006. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611942078719-2CHAACAD9M0UTLA9731N/v.jpg Collections - Landscapes Snowy Day. 22’’x28’’. Oil on Canvas. 2004. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611943069807-PBAK6Q3KAC5T3JU68YRM/y.jpg Collections - Landscapes Private Property. 10’’x14’’. Oil on Canvas. 2019. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611941421516-YSL0X1ZMMHFRA50O0WQO/IMG_3278.jpg Collections - Landscapes Warm Night. 30’’x46’’. Oil on Canvas. 1994. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611943528029-MYK5T0KPM0THXPDNYI5R/p.jpg Collections - Landscapes Drying Apricots. 30’’x38’’. Oil on Canvas. 2015. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611943730200-U0540FQSZTVGDABQOAS9/g.jpg Collections - Landscapes Golf. 36’’x40’’. Acrylic on Canvas. 2019. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611941599905-CT7BXH4FUHN8ZD5GAVPK/image4.jpg Collections - Landscapes Weekday. 40’’x50’’. Acrylic on Canvas. 2020. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611943380687-YTNJ8QXHJSO6QFDLN4VV/ai.jpg Collections - Landscapes Bergen, Norway. 18’’x13’’. 2017. Norway https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611941502206-UW071DPLZESY5ITG53SV/n.jpg Collections - Landscapes Sunset. 39’’x43’’. Acrylic on Canvas. 2020. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611942521200-IE85JO6SL3MGYXTT2B1P/d.jpg Collections - Landscapes Village in the Mountains. 28’’x38’’. Acrylic on Canvas. 2000. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611943567540-3V2M43TZGI4HJMGX0QFP/ae.jpg Collections - Landscapes Norway. 12’’x16’’. Oil on Canvas. 2017. Norway https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611942641375-5N58CG1VUXADXR5HOP50/ab.jpg Collections - Landscapes Moonlight. 20’’x24’’. Oil on Canvas. 2007. New York https://www.sergeisaakian.com/collections-1/project-two-pnf95 monthly 0.5 2023-03-12 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611937145125-6E4SOHW2XA7RCQE2DQ0X/aq.jpg Collections - Still Life Old Oil Lamp. 34"x 48’’. Oil on canvas. 2020. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611937927423-BNFE1Z3DRGEO1SLTJAIY/ap.jpg Collections - Still Life Turkish Samovar. 35’’x35’’. Oil on Canvas. 2012. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611939696354-VIY11XA4ID67FJ34BDWP/an.jpg Collections - Still Life Winter Apples. 39’’x45’’. Acrylic on Canvas. 2016. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611940184100-3ELP72611QLKNB8OCT82/ac.jpg Collections - Still Life Red Chair. 30’’x26’’. Oil on Canvas. 2021. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611939461022-DS8C8R49CHYZV3KYAJX2/IMG_3769%2B%25281%2529.jpg Collections - Still Life Violin. 36’’x44’’. Oil on Canvas. 2002. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611937230847-43FJHOSEISTNOLRHEEAN/gg.jpg Collections - Still Life Russian Samovar. 38’’x39’’. Oil on canvas. 2012. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611938399749-OXBQDN7VG28PZ2OC5799/ao.jpg Collections - Still Life Red Peppers. 36’’x36’’. Oil on Canvas. 2019. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611938219987-KW0YEP5AWR22JX4M8MSE/x.jpg Collections - Still Life Orange. 30’’x24’’. Oil on Canvas. 2020. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611939933782-SN3GADL9NLR15GUEPTKP/image5.jpg Collections - Still Life Aloe. 20’’x24’’. Oil on Canvas. 2015. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611937815689-MXH1YKTTE0ADU02NV291/i.jpg Collections - Still Life Old Bottles. 36’’x48’’. Oil on Canvas. 2012. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611938025838-VWQ33F5FBU7KM551DMC5/am.jpg Collections - Still Life Red Table Cloth. 36’’x36’’. Mixed Media. 2019. New York https://www.sergeisaakian.com/collections-1/project-one-mgaw6 monthly 0.5 2021-02-13 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1613229712487-WNV8GQQZL2GQQZ0Q4VTN/s.jpg Collections - Women Sisters. 48’’x36’’. Acrylic on Canvas. 2019. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1613229860199-O4UYRT46UL6X0NYHL7NB/IMG_3723.jpg Collections - Women Woman at the Arch. 54’’x36’’. Mixed Media. 2019. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611935681125-1RBWLA21PEFHOAPKKSEY/al.jpg Collections - Women Women in Red. 14’’x28’’. Acrylic on Panel. 2018. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1613229760225-5KKSNC7DJQXEQRWBORLM/av.jpg Collections - Women Motherhood. 54’’x46’’. Oil on Canvas. 2019. New York. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611883310742-IDZDJKBCQ4RJ2UTW9NEZ/ah.jpg Collections - Women Women in White. 20’’x24’’. Acrylic on Canvas. 2020. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1613229613176-B3V4BQU771ZDYOX049FT/o.jpg Collections - Women Mother and Daughter. 54’’x36’’. Acrylic on Canvas. 2019. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611934679621-BTM1W8MO47QHEEXYCPWO/IMG_2723.jpg Collections - Women Women in Blue. 20’’x24’’. Acrylic on Canvas. 2020. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1613229823658-5STKBE374I5QBQTOTGV8/IMG_3066.jpg Collections - Women Woman with Earring. 24’’x18’’. Acrylic on Canvas. 2020. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611934780681-JRFCMO1472OALL5XV0OL/image2.jpg Collections - Women Villagers. 36’’x38’’. Acrylic on Canvas. 2020. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1613228441785-SH0UA49JT0V79I43AOJ6/IMG_3568.jpg Collections - Women Moving On. 48’’x40’’. Oil on Canvas. 2020. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1613229649238-2VZ5SZBFCXUNOKW08RGN/IMG_3726.jpg Collections - Women Young Woman in White Scarf. 54’’x36’’. Oil on Canvas. 2019. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1613229538944-Z06OAKF9UISTN9LV2VRJ/IMG_3356.jpg Collections - Women Portrait of the Artist’s Wife. 36’’x26’’. Acrylic on Canvas. 2020. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611936625964-AHHFD8XKI85RD7PO8JKV/image6.jpg Collections - Women Conversations by the Brook. 44’’x68’’. Oil on Canvas. 2020. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611934817405-KA9AYZ53Z6YA7ET53HGH/x.jpg Collections - Women Woman with Jars. 35’’x35’’. Acrylic on Canvas. 2019. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611934741509-X8WPE2YSEDP805ZEE7SQ/IMG_2522%2525252B%25252525281%2525252529.jpg Collections - Women Laundry. 14’’x18’’. Oil on Canvas. 2017. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611934866574-W9KVKQUUD6C1BEHYXMFW/at.jpg Collections - Women Evening. 36’’x36’’. Oil on Canvas. 2017. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1611934623222-U54KXJ3WIJFOJGICR6QW/m.jpg Collections - Women Chatting. 36’’x48’’. Oil on Canvas. 1994. New York https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/600c434a87812b75eb098b46/1616864296198-QB6P4M6S1O6QLA4I7D4M/IMG_4113.jpg Collections - Women Woman Carrying Jar. 54’’x36’’. Acrylic on Canvas. 2021. New York.