Raffi Yedalian

Lebanese
artist Raffi Yedalian's expression is rooted in thematic and stylistic
dichotomies. In both his paintings and sculptures, he confronts the figurative
with the abstract, unity with fragmentation and confinement with freedom. His
sitters conjure a rich emotional repertoire, which contrasts with the artist's
rigid use of line and colour, entrapping them in a perpetual state of tension
and unease. 

Born in Beirut in 1973, Yedalian is a painter and sculptor. He studied Etching at the Academie Libanaise des Beaux-Arts “ALBA", and Fine Arts at the Academy of Fine Art Toros Roslin. He is a member of the Lebanese Artists Association of Painters and Sculptors. Since 2006, he has been a Fine Arts instructor at Haigazian University in Beirut. He has held different solo & collective exhibitions, including the Salon d'Automne at Sursock Museum. His work has been showcased in several Art Fairs: Beirut Art Fairs and Art 15 London.

In 2012, “Meghabard", his bronze monument, was inaugurated and blessed by H.H. Pope Benedict XVI during his visit to Bzommar, Lebanon. A miniature replica in bronze of the monument is part of H.H Pope Benedict XVI's collection in Vatican City.

In 2015, he presented to H.H. Pope Francis his painting of Blessed Ignatius Maloyan, in St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican, and this painting has been reproduced & issued by the Philatelic and Numismatic Office of Vatican City Authorities in a Limited Edition Stamp on September 2, 2015.

Also in 2015, he created the monument in bronze “Gratitude", in Gemmayzeh Pasteur Street, Beirut, and in 2016 the monument of “Blessed Ignatius Maloyan", in the Convent of Bzommar, Lebanon.

In 2017, he created a Torch for the Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima, Portugal, on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the apparitions (1917-2017).

Some of the artist's works are on view in permanent collections including in Sursock Museum in Beirut, in Vatican City in the collection of H.H. Pope Francis and H.H. Pope Benedict XVI, in the Modern and Contemporary Art Museum “MACAM" Lebanon, in the Museum of the Shrine of Fatima, Portugal, in the Museum of The Armenian Genocide in Armenia, in the Museum of the Convent of Bzommar Lebanon, and many more throughout the world.