ARMENIAN MUSEUM OF FRESNO SHOWCASES TAPESTRY WORKS BY RENOWNED ARTIST MARINA MAMYAN
FRESNO, CA — The Armenian Museum of Fresno is proud to present its newest exhibition showcasing the work of acclaimed contemporary artist Marina Mamyan, on view now through the end of September. Featuring 17 hand-woven tapestry works, the exhibition offers a rare chance to experience the intricate, and deeply expressive art of one of Armenia’s leading contemporary voices in textile and visual art. The main exhibition will be on display at the Armenian Museum of Fresno on Shaw Avenue, with a special showing of select works during Art Hop night at the museum’s gallery on Fulton Street in the Helm Building.
Marina Mamyan is a multidisciplinary artist whose practice spans tapestry, painting, mixed media, and photography. Born in Yerevan, Armenia, Mamyan lives and works between Armenia and the United States. With a career that bridges tradition and innovation, her work has been exhibited across Europe, the U.S., and Armenia, and is included in both public and private collections—including the Ministry of Culture of Armenia, the Municipality of Ponte de Lima in Portugal, and the Armenian Museum in Fresno.
Best known for her evocative and structurally rich tapestries, Mamyan draws from modernist movements such as Constructivism while maintaining a deeply personal and sensory aesthetic. Her works explore themes of perception, memory, and space, blending geometry and abstraction with emotional depth. In series such as Closed Windows, inspired by the shuttered architecture of Guimarães, Portugal, Mamyan uses textile as a medium to explore boundaries—between inside and outside, presence and absence, light and shadow.
This exhibition continues the Museum’s commitment to celebrating Armenian heritage through contemporary art and culture. Mamyan, a former educator at Yerevan’s National Center of Aesthetics and a longtime member of the Artists’ Union of Armenia, brings a uniquely reflective voice to the global conversation on textile art and visual storytelling.
“This exhibition invites visitors to experience tapestry not only as a craft but as a profound language of emotion and form,” said Museum Director Varoujan Der Simonian. “Mamyan’s work is deeply rooted in Armenian tradition but speaks universally through its beauty and conceptual strength.”
The exhibition will run through September. The artist will be present during the following opening events:
Downtown Art Hop
Gallery on 1107 Fulton St. at the Helm Building, Fresno, CA 93721.
Thursday, August 7, 5 – 8 p.m.
Reception at the Armenian Museum of Fresno in the UC Center
550 E. Shaw Ave. Fresno CA 93710
Thursday, August 17, 3 – 6 p.m.
