Constantinople Bosphorus Ottoman Period By Civanyan

Civanyan was born in the Beşiktaş district of Constantinople in 1848. He was the son of the violinist Ohannes[a], who was the palace musician of Sultan Abdülmecid. His brother Harutyun Civanyan was also a painter like him. He took painting lessons from Abraham Sakanyan, another Ottoman Armenian painter, in the 1860s. He attended the academy opened by Pierre Guillemet in Beyoğlu. In 1874, the famous Russian painter of Armenian origin Ivan Ayvazovsky began to pay attention to seascapes thanks to him. Due to his desire to speak Italian and his love for art, he moved to Italy and resided there from 1876 to 1879. After returning to Istanbul, he married an Italian woman in 1885. However, his wife died four years after their marriage. His second marriage was again to an Italian woman. Through his marriage, he became closer to the Italian community in Constantinople. He took refuge in Odessa in the spring of 1894 due to the Hamidiye massacres. After living in Odessa for 7 years, he resided in St. Petersburg for 4 years. Later, he returned to Istanbul in the summer of 1905 and died on February 14, 1906. Dimensions without frame: 50cm x 36cm