Varaz Samuel Samuelian was born in Yerevan, Armenia, in 1917.  He is the child of 1915 massacre survivors.  He came to the United States after World War II as a displaced person, sponsored by his older brother, Dickran Samuellian, in 1946. 

After arriving in the United States he lived with his brother, Jack Samuelian, in Burlingame, California, for several years.  During that time he painted and started a business as a sign painter.  As the business developed, he was able to move to Belmont, where he lived for many years.  While there he married his beloved wife Ann.

Varaz and Ann moved to Fresno, California, to be near her family in 1957.  There he continued his work in painting, began writing in earnest, and developed a large number of sculptures. 

In the late 1970's he purchased an apartment in Paris, France.  There he continued to develop his painting. 

Varaz died in 1995, in Fresno, California.  His last words to me were of his devotion to Paris.