Hasmig Vartanian was born in Haifa, Israel, in 1946 of Armenian descent and grew up in Beirut, Lebanon. Her family immigrated to the United States in 1958. They first lived in Philadelphia, then moved to Racine, Wisconsin, where she completed high school in 1964. Vartanian traveled and worked all around America during the 1960s and early 70s with the only constant being an interest in art.

In 1973 Vartanian began studies in art at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee where she earned her bachelors in fiber art. An MFA in painting from Washington State University followed. Eventually she moved to Louisiana, where she has been a practicing artist for more than 30 years. Vartanian lives and works in Covington, across Lake Pontchartrain from New Orleans with her husband Douglas Brewster, also a painter.