Arman Manookian: Hawaii’s Van Gogh – A Lost Voice of the Pacific The art world often seeks out the dramatic, the scandalous, the utterly unique. Arman Tateos Manookian (1904-1931), an Armenian-American painter who briefly captivated Honolulu in the 1920s and 30s, embodies all of these qualities. Known affectionately as “Hawaii’s Van Gogh,” his tragically short life produced a remarkable body of work—a vibrant, romantic vision of islan…