Manushak Barseghyan

Barseghyan Manushak (b. 1995, Yerevan) is an Armenian artist currently living and working in Paris. She is presently studying Visual Arts (Arts Plastiques) at Panthéon-Sorbonne University. After graduating from the Armenian State University of Economics in 2016, she developed an independent artistic practice grounded in painting, material experimentation and conceptual inquiry.

Her work has been presented in solo and collective exhibitions in Armenia and France. In 2023, she held a solo exhibition at the Municipal Exhibition Hall in Etchmiadzin and participated in “Peu”, a collective perfor­mance integrating exhibition, dance, and music in Yerevan. In 2024, she took part in collective exhibitions at NPAK (Armenian Center for Contemporary Experimental Art), Galerie Two Arcs, Kitchen Lab, the Union of Artists of Armenia in Yerevan, and the International Art Symposium of Machanents in Etchmiadzin. In 2025, she participated in the TEG Festival - Artist Residency Program at the Henrik Igityan National Centre for Aesthetics in Vanadzor, as well as in a collective exhibition at the Municipal Exhibition Hall in Etchmi-adzin and the “Menk Project - Coup d’Appel” at La Salle in Paris.

Her practice investigates materiality as a dynamic and transformative process. Through ongoing experimen­tation with eco-printing, natural pigments and rust are subsequently painted and overpainted, allowing con­trolled gestures to intersect with natural reactions - mirroring the relationship between microcosm and cos­mos. Her work reflects on notions of infinity, light, and invisible structures that connect human existence to universal systems. Feminist perspectives inform her research, particularly in relation to the body, resil-ience, and material presence. Color functions not only as a visual element but as a sensorial bridge between matter and perception.

Artist Statement

My artistic practice centers on experimentation with eco-printing, using natural materials such as flowers, leaves, spices, herbs, and berries, alongside chemicals like aluminum sulfate, calcium carbonate, iron water, vinegar, lemon (as a natural acid), and sodium. I am always eager to expand this material palette, exploring new substances and processes. I steam fabrics and paper bundles, apply the Japanese hapa-zome technique, and experiment with elemental conditions—water, fire, warmth, and cold—on natural fabrics and paper.

Often, I layer these eco-prints with acrylic painting or drawing and seek to further develop my work in three-dimensional space through fabrics and found objects. Painting unfolds as a process of intuition and discovery: through gestures, forms begin to emerge, and I gradually recognize creatures, events, or symbols that inhabit the work. Throughout this process, I pay close attention to my physical, emotional, and

intellectual states and their responses, allowing them to guide my decisions.

I am fascinated by the natural sciences—from the micro to the macrocosm—which open new perspectives for my practice. This subjective exploration informs my practice, inviting viewers to form their own

interpretations. As a student, my engagement with art history and philosophy—particularly feminist

philosophy—enriches my practice in the present, while leaving space for my interests to continue evolving. By combining material experimentation, personal experience, and philosophical reflection, my work creates spaces in which forms, patterns, and meanings emerge and transform.

Exhibitions

TEG Festival – Enclosed Garden Residency Exhibition, Henrik Igityan National Center for Aesthetics (col­laborative exhibition), Vanadzor, Armenia, 2025

Auction with MENK Project, La Salle (group exhibition), Paris, France, 2025

My Soul in Exile, 28th Annual Festival of Alternative Art, NPAK (group exhibition), Yerevan, Armenia, 2024

Two Arcs Gallery (collection display), Yerevan, Armenia, 2024

The Lost World, Kitchen Lab (group exhibition), Yerevan, Armenia, 2024

While Still Alive and Capable of Making Choices, Artists Union of Armenia (group exhibition), Yerevan, Armenia, 2024

Flight, 10th Machanents International Art Symposium (group exhibition), Echmiadzin, Armenia, 2023

Sirel ev Usumnasirel (To Love and To Explore), Municipal Exhibition Hall (solo exhibition), Echmiadzin, Armenia, 2023

Collab, Peu (exhibition, performance, music), Yerevan, Armenia, 2023