To mark the 100th anniversary of sculptor Ghukas Chubaryan, perhaps best known for his statute of Mesrop Mashtots that greets visitors outside Yerevan’s Matenadaran (Institute of Ancient Manuscripts), the artist’s family has donated one of his works that now adorns the Armenian capital’s Children’s Park.

The bronze statute, entitled Luys Ijni Vrad (May Light Descend on You), was unveiled yesterday. Chubaryan’s work is dedicated to his brother Luseghen who went missing during the Great Patriotic War.

A People's Artist of Armenia, Chubaryan created numerous works that later became symbols of the Armenian capital.

"My father considered this statue to be his best work. The sculpture is dedicated to the memory of his brother, who was martyred in 1942 in the swamps near Leningrad. He created the statue in 1985. At that time, the brother was still considered missing, only his name tag was found,” recalled the sculptor’s daughter Anush Chubaryan who attended the unveiling.

Anoush Chobaryan said the remains of her uncle were discovered in 2007, two years before her father death.

“My father was a strong man, strong, but that day, when they called our house and said that they had found the remains of his brother, I saw my father sobbing for the first time. I know what it means when there is a missing person at home. For them the war never ends. My father used to say that when the whole country celebrated Victory Day, we did not celebrate,” says Anush Chobaryan.

She says many of her students who fought in the 2020 Artsakh war never came home. Some returned disabled.

“It is necessary to constantly remind humanity that when they cancel a human life, they are giving up their rational part in one way or another. That is the terrible law of war. Those who have gone through war never like war. This statue is pacifist, but it is not about retreat at all, it is about humanity," said the sculptor's daughter.

Another of Ghukas Chubaryan’s well-known works is the statue of composer and conductor Alexander Spendiaryan outside Yerevan’s Opera House.

Photos: Hetq