Vachagan Narazyan was a major part of the non-conformist art movement of the Soviet Union. He was trained to paint in the classical traditional Social Realism style. Vachagan wanted to paint from his heart, soul and imagination. He disagreed with the Soviet dogma and the conformist ideals of the Stalinist. Following his beliefs he joined the Non-Conformist art movement. This movement consisted of a group of artists who painted in the Non-Traditional style, which was illegal under Soviet rule. Stalinist ideals dictate all art needs to depict everyday people working hard and being happy. The paintings also had to be painted in realistic, repsentational form. Stalinist ideals are against anything imaginary or controversial and against the status quo. Painting in the Non-Conformist style under Soviet rule, Vachagan put his life and his family's lives in jeopardy. His work first arrived in the United States smuggled by Dr. Norton Dodge. Dr. Dodge worked for the United States inside the USSR. He was the first person to bring the Non-Conformist to the free world. He owns over 10,000 paintings of the Non-Conformist including 50 of Vachagan's oils. A large portion of the collection was displayed at the Zimmerlie museum in New Brunswick, NJ in 1995. Vachagan Narazyan has only been showing in the United States for eight years.