WILMINGTON, Mass. — Martin Barooshian, 92, passed away peacefully while taking a nap on January 25, 2022.
He was a groundbreaking American surrealist painter and master printmaker, as well as an internationally recognized expert in American and European prints and printmaking. His artwork is in the permanent collections of many of the world’s great museums including the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NY, the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), the National Gallery of Art (Smithsonian), the Addison Gallery of American Art, the National Gallery of Modern Art in New Delhi, the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, and the National Gallery of Armenia.
His complex yet life-affirming Surrealist works received international recognition for his artistic contributions. His art was exhibited in over 50 solo shows and hundreds of exhibitions. In a review of one of those solo shows in Boston in 2006, Boston Globe art critic Cate McQuaid dubbed Barooshian’s biomorphic surrealistic style as “Pablo Picasso meets Stan Lee.” Martin smiled after reading that review and said, “I’ll take that – I like both those guys!” He made art daily up until his last day, and was gratified at the resurgence of interest in his work in recent years. His art can be seen at www.martinbarooshian.org.
A Boston native and first-generation child of Armenian Genocide survivors, Martin was trained at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and also earned a B.S. in Education from Tufts University and a M.A. in Art History from Boston University. He continued his education at the famed Atelier 17 in Paris. Upon his return to the U.S., he settled in the greater New York City area where he taught printmaking at the Pratt Institute, and was a public school art teacher until his retirement. He also served as the works-on-paper expert at Swann Auction Galleries. He and his wife Mary later relocated to their native Massachusetts, where he spent his final years devoting himself to his artwork and family.
Martin was a loving husband, father, stepfather, and grandfather. He is survived by his beloved wife, Mary; his daughter Margo Goody and her husband John, and grandchildren Spencer and Aidan; his son, Dana Barooshian and his husband Andy Martin; and his sister, Virginia Karamanian. He also leaves behind his step-children Richard Balekdjian and wife Laura and step-grandchild Janine; David Balekdjian and his husband Michael Russo; Arline Carboneau and her husband Brian, and step-grandchildren Jacob, Julia, and Jacqueline.
A memorial service will be announced at a later date.
