Around the Bend

A native of Armenia, Edmund Yaghjian arrived as a child in Providence, Rhode Island, where his family opened a grocery store. He was educated there and in New York before becoming the chair of the art department at the University of South Carolina. He wandered the streets of Columbia, making them his primary subject matter and often painted local corner stores.

Yaghjian frequently experimented with his materials; in this painting, his application of lacquer on Masonite results in an especially hard-looking surface. The street scene is a riot of brash and contrasting colors, dominated by reddish-orange tones under a bright blue sky. The structures are humble, with steps, railings, and supports creating a lively visual rhythm.