Born in Damascus, to an Armenian mother and a Syrian father. After obtaining an M.Sc. in biochemistry in Damascus, in 2000 he moved to Paris, where he received his Ph.D. in microbiology from Paris Diderot University, he then joined the ENSAD Art school of Paris. Arbach’s work spans a variety of platforms, starting with his scientific background to varied artistic practice, including photography, drawing, illustration, sculpture and art installations.

The key element of his work is the human spirit from past to present, by constantly seeking to push the boundaries of our consciousness on the way to unification. By guiding his conceptual thinking towards poetry, Arbach’s projects are standing at the intersection of the collective memory of trauma, inherited from his diverse origins and his personal life experiences.

Resilience is the beating heart of his creative process in response to human pain and suffering.

Arbach’s work has been presented, among others, at the Cité internationale universitaire de Paris (2007), at the Europia Gallery (2013), on the forecourt of Notre-Dame de Paris (2012), at the Nuit Blanche Paris (2014), at the Power House Arenan, New york (2019) at the Brooklyn Public Library, New york (2020), at the Gallery Pauline Pavec (2021) and most recently at Espace Écureuil, Toulouse, France (2023).


PUBLIC ART

2022    Letters From The Ocean, Manhattan Park pool, Roosvelt Island, New York, NY.
2021    MAWTINI- motherland, Chelsea Market gallery, New York, NY.
2020    MAWTINI- motherland, Plazza of Brooklyn Public Library, A Night of Philosophy and Ideas, Brooklyn, NY.
2014    MAWTINI- motherland, Saint Sévrein church, White Night contemporary art festival of Paris.
2013    A Screen to The Brain, Installation for Felipe Oliveira Baptista and Bureau BETAK at Festival Hyères, France.
2012    Impesanteur, Parvis de Notre Dame, Paris, France.


SELECTED EXHIBITIONS

2023    Horizons olfactifs, Cureted by Sandra Barré at Espace écureuil, Toulouse, France.
2021    ODORE, Cureted by Sandra Barré at Pauline Pavec gallery, Paris, France.  
2019    On the Road, Unpublishable, Power House Arena, Brooklyn, NY.
2013    Syria My Forgotten Land, Europia gallery, Paris, France.
2013    Eikona. Diaspo’arts, Anako, Paris, France.
2007    Armenians Portrait of a People, Cité Universitaire de Paris, France.
2002    Armenians The Silence of the Stones, Cité Universitaire de Paris, France.


SELECTED PUBLICATIONS

2021    L’odeur de l’art, a panorama of olfactory art, Sandra Barré, Brussels, Belgium.
2020    Picto NY Collection, Covid-19 relief fund to support The Bowery Mission, New York.
            On the Road, Unpublishable, PowerHouse Books, Archway Editions, Brooklyn, NY.
2018    Interview with Architectural Photographer Hratch Arbach, Bontena magazine.
            Commercial Architecture Magazine, by Gary L. Parr, Vol.16, No.8.
2017    The Photographer of the Week, Picto New York.
            Lost Homelands: An Interview with Hratch Arbach, by John Shorb, Arts Vol. 28 No. 2, New York.
2015    A Discussion Over the Cliff with Hratch Arbach, by Margaux Bonnet, From Sham with Love.
            Life in Progress, special edition, by Francis Kurkdjian, best artistic collaborations, New York.
            A reflection about the status of Art in our society, Queens Museum, NY.
2014    In Black and White, by Hratch Tchilingirian, University of Oxford, UK.
            Remarkable Syrian artistic event evoking peace held in Paris, by Haifa Said, SANA agency.
            Hratch Arbach x Cire Trudon, by Kaelie Kelleher, The Wild magazine.
2011    Interview with Hratch Arbach, by Vana Afarian, AZTAG newspaper, Vol.84 No. 275, Beirut, Lebanon.   


SCIENTIFIC JOURNAL COVER DESIGN

2022    Multi-omic analysis of clonal hematopoiesis, «Nature Genetics», Vol.54 No.10
2021    CDK6 complexes and tumor cell response, « Nature Cancer », Vol.2  No.4
            Antimalarial Drug Discovery, «Trends in Parasitology », Vol.37, No.6
2020    CD28 antibodies cross-link tumors with T cells, « Science Translational Medicine », Vol.12, Iss 549
2019    SHP2 Drives Adaptive Resistance to ERK-dependent Tumors « Cell Reports », Vol. 26 Iss 1
2016    Germinal Center-Specific Locus Control Region in B cells, « Immunity », Vol.45, Iss 3


GRANTS / AWARDS

2022    Grant from Creatives Rebuild New York.
2021    CNYC Artist Corps Grant, New York.
2020    Grant from Cultural Services of the French Embassy in the U.S., New York.
            Grant from ArtBridge New York.
2016    Immigrant Artist Mentoring Program, New York Foundation for the Arts, Brooklyn, NY.
2014    Grant from Art, Culture et Foi, Paris, France.
            Selected artist for the contemporary art festival, Nuit Blanche Paris 2014, Paris, France.
2007    Selected artist to represent Armenia in Year of Armenia art festival in France.
2003    Three years fellowship from ARC pour la Recherche sur le Cancer Foundation, Paris, France.
2002    Young Scientist Award, Des Treilles Foundation, Paris, France.
2001    Grant from Société de Secours des Amis des Sciences, Paris, France.
2000    Three years fellowship from Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, Lisbon, Portugal.