By Bethany BROWN

“The Birds and Trees of Komitas” can be spotted on the east wall of Honest Cardiology located at 2525 Honolulu Ave. Dr. Arsen Hovanesyan, physician, commissioned the mural in late 2020, months before the business opened in June 2021, hiring Chicago-born artist Nicholas Freeman to complete it.

“One of the things that caught my eye from the very beginning was the eastern wall and how much street exposure it had,” Hovanesyan said. “As we were going through the process of designing and demolishing the building, it occurred to me that we could put a mural there.”

Hovanesyan said he developed the idea for the mural and worked with Freeman to finalize the design and perfect his vision. The pair met with Glendale city officials to get the okay on the project before moving forward. The response was unanimous approval with Freeman even receiving a Mayor’s Commendation Award after the mural was completed.

Freeman said he began painting during the COVID-19 mandated quarantine and he enjoyed that it gave him a reason to leave the house.

“I don’t want to tell you how long it took because I don’t want people to think I paint that slowly,” Freeman joked. “I was really taking my time.”

His work showcases the complexity of those who share stories – and brings their tales to life.

“I’ve always been interested in storytellers and bringing stories to people in different ways,” Freeman said. “There’s historical research that goes into it and then it’s just taking that research and trying to package it into a way that interests people and catches the eye.”

The artwork is inspired by the music and life of Komitas, an Armenian composer and pioneering ethnomusicologist who is considered the founder of the Armenian national school of music.

For centuries Komitas’ adaptations of Armenian folksongs have preserved and expanded the symbolic importance of their subjects.

The mural is composed of such elements, with focus on birds and trees as emphasized in his various music compositions.

The common crane has developed into an enduring Armenian symbol of nostalgia and longing. In the mural, Komitas watches solemnly as the crane flies across the landscape. The swallow is fabled to return to its home even if it has been destroyed. The bird’s verticality recalls the shape of the Tsitsernakaberd (Swallow’s Nest), Armenia’s official memorial dedicated to the victims of the Armenian Genocide in Yerevan.

A crook-winged quail can be seen in Komitas’ hands to signify his favor of the natural world and the spiritual care he shared through his music. The poplar tree stands in visual balance to Komitas as a reminder of resilient Armenian virtues. Lilies and daffodils are included and have long been symbols of grace, purity and joyfulness.

The partridge serves as the visual foundation of the mural. The young birds greet viewers and lead them further into the landscape. Apricot tree branches can be seen with blossoms intertwined in sheet music. The sheets are depicted flying across the landscape – mountain breezes are an admired element in Armenian folk music.

“That I didn’t have the specific heritage I never felt impeded me to be able to make a connection to that community as a whole because that information is out there and, if you take the time to look for it, you can learn,” Freeman said.

“Being Armenian, everybody just knew Komitas growing up – he’s a musical icon in our heritage – so as I was listening to the string quartet driving to work, it dawned on me that most people don’t know who he is or how to translate his work from Armenian to English,” Hovanesyan said. “So, educating the public was an important component [of the mural] … but it wasn’t the only thing. To me, the values that he embodies in his music completely resonated with the values that I have and the values in which I approach medicine.”

Hovanesyan stressed the need for more of these values – kindness, compassion, sincerity and humility – in the community. He noted that the Armenian history that Komitas sings about can be sad, but there are happy tunes as well that he wanted reflected in the design.

“There’s too much negativity in the world and my job as a physician is to help patients find the positive in their illness, how to deal with it, how to cope with it and, if possible, how to make it go away,” Hovanesyan said.

His goal for the mural was to show the community the hopefulness, beauty and values Komitas’ music encompasses.

Freeman further emphasized the celebration and story being represented in the work.

“This is for people at large to celebrate a specific part of land which is under great conflict,” he said.

“I hope residents will stop by and learn, Armenian or non-Armenian,” Hovanesyan said. “It’s just [a] good, rich, beautiful culture and I think learning about the cultures of various ethnicities is a way for us to all come together, to merge and stand together in a positive way.”

Plans are in the works for an event to be held soon to dedicate the mural. A plaque with a brief description of the work will be installed for those who pass by and a QR code will be attached that will connect to the website upon scanning.

For more information, visit https://www.komitasmural.com/.