Serge Shart was a painter of international acclaim who enjoyed a lengthy, illustrious career. Born in Beirut to Armenian parents, he displayed a talent for drawing as a teenager and took up an apprenticeship as a draughtsman in the Geographic Service of the FFL. 

Aged 20, Shart moved from Lebanon to France and began studying at the Ecole des Beaux Art in Paris in 1948, but left after just two weeks, preferring the city’s open studios as a source of inspiration. Another influence was the French-Armenian artist and illustrator Jean Carzou, whom he met in Paris. Shart then traveled across Europe, taking in the works displayed in the museums of Italy France, and Holland, having developed a passion for surrealist and abstract art. His first exhibition took place in Beirut in 1950 and marked the beginning of a highly successful, lengthy career.

Shart’s art encompasses a wide range of subjects, from still lifes and portraits to beach and rural scenes that capture and encapsulate moments in time in brilliant color and detail. A recipient of the Uppsala Prize (1952), he worked and exhibited successfully for more than five decades. Today, his paintings remain highly sought after and are displayed in prestigious institutions around the world.