Viro Arnold

Viro Arnold (born Virab Khatschatrian in Armenia in 1969) is a German portrait painter of Armenian origin and is regarded as one of Germany's most recognised contemporary portrait artists. His work has attracted numerous well-known figures from the worlds of sport, music and television, including Snoop Dogg, Ice Cube, Mario Gomez, Arthur Abraham and Stefan Raab.

He studied at the Panos Terlemezian Academy of Fine Arts in Armenia, graduating with distinction. Following the Nagorno-Karabakh War, he moved to Russia and continued his studies at the Ilya Repin Academy of Arts in Saint Petersburg. During this period, he supported himself by selling his paintings on the streets, while a major turning point in his career came with an exhibition at the Museum of the History of Religion.

After moving to Germany, Arnold established himself as a portrait artist. His works have been exhibited internationally, including in New York, Los Angeles and Las Vegas. Today, he works from his studio in Fellbach near Stuttgart, where he lives with his family. Although his artistic practice has expanded over the years, portrait painting remains at the heart of his work.