LIFTING THE VEIL OF OBLIVION

Story Tangible Intangible
Country
Armenia
Organization name
Cafesjian Museum Foundation
Storyteller
Yelizaveta
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Overview

A story about how a solo exhibition of a female Armenian artist in one of Armenia’s local museums paved a way for the public to discover many other forgotten female artists. These discoveries will later form the basis for new exhibitions and projects.  

"A woman did not come into the world only to be pleasant. A woman came to develop her intelligence, mental, moral, and physical qualities. Being pleasant mustn’t be the sole purpose/objective of every self-respecting woman, but to become an active beneficial element in the world.” Zabel Yesayan (Armenian writer, novelist, and social activist)

 

We begin this story with the words of a brave woman who was an author and one of the greatest national and social figures of Armenia – Zabel Yesayan. However, our story is not about her but about female artists of 20th-century Armenia. These women have made valuable contributions to the development of fine arts in Armenia.   

Our story is directly connected to the Cafesjian Center for the Arts (CCA). Since its opening, the Center has stayed faithful to its mission – bringing the best of contemporary art to Armenia and presenting the best of Armenian culture to the world. 

The rich exhibitions programming of CCA has presented female artists over the years. In April of 2022, for the first time, a solo exhibition of a female artist opened at CCA: Tereza Mirzoyan 100, a retrospective exhibition dedicated to the centenary of the artist.  

Tereza Mirzoyan (1922-2016) was one of the prominent artists who had significant input in the Armenian sculpture of the 20th century; unfortunately, her name is not quite well-known amongst the broader society in Armenia. Nevertheless, not only has she left a rich artistic heritage but also had a priceless impact on the development of Armenian sculpture. She was one of the first lecturers at the Fine Arts Academy of Armenia and worked there for nearly 60 years. Her intense personal and professional life passed in parallel with local and international unprecedented escalating political, and socio-economical, cultural ups and downs.

She was one of the few female sculptors in Armenia in the 20th century. Hence, presenting her heritage in the form of a solo exhibition was even more relevant to CCA. Moreover, Mirzoyan was one of the few female artists in the entire USSR who worked in the field of monumental sculpture. Despite sounding outdated in the 21st century, it is a fact that male artists have always dominated in the art scene, especially in the field of sculpture. There are both objective and subjective reasons for this. In this sense, bringing a female sculptor to the forefront and shedding light on her work becomes a priority.

During the preparatory process of the exhibition, we were conducting non-official surveys amongst our visitors to see whether they were familiar with Tereza Mirozyan or knew who she was. If the answer was negative, we would ask if they knew any female Armenian artists. The results were not inspiring. Most people were only familiar with one or two female artists and were most familiar with male artists. As a result of the survey, we were inspired to create an educational program based on the exhibition. The main objective of the educational program was to explore the art of female Armenian artists. This was the reason that we decided to extend the topic of the exhibition and designed an educational program referring to other female Armenian artists of the 20th century. Their names, unfortunately, are either not quite familiar to the general public or are on the verge of being completely forgotten. 

The socio-political and cultural life of Armenia underwent a sharp turn during the 20th century, influenced by the aftermath of global events, including the two World Wars. After the establishment of Soviet rule, the conditions for the actualization/establishment of the arts were unfavorable: a destroyed country without active establishments, museums, unions, educational institutions, and artists. Moreover, a specific cultural policy was already established in the young republic. Social realism, a unified artistic style of the proletarian union, was declared in the early 1930s. Cultural figures, including female artists, were creating and trying to reinforce their positions in such difficult conditions. 

These issues did not escape Zabel Yesayan’s attention. She wrote: “According to the Soviet Constitution, women in Armenia have and can exercise equal rights. However, the rights granted by the law are not enough if the woman is not truly free.” 

Let us return to the heroine of our story, Tereza Mirzoyan. When speaking to her daughter, painter Anush Arakelyan, we discovered that Mirzoyan was always concerned about the problems and obstacles that female artists encountered. She always tried to support other female artists, as she realized how difficult it was to be an artist and also a woman and a mother. We are certain that the educational program based on the exhibition, Tereza Mirzoyan 100, would have received positive feedback from Mirzoyan. 

The educational program was titled Women in Armenian Art. This program granted a wonderful opportunity to explore other female Armenian artists of the 20th century, their artistic legacy, and the environment in which they created. During the research phase of creating the program, it became evident that such information was quite sparse. The art history of the Soviet era was focused on the works of male artists. Female artists were either completely excluded or presented very superficially in the catalogs about Armenian art of the 20th century. Besides any and every available publication, meeting with the family members and relatives of the female artists was very helpful, as they provided personal archives and autobiographies. This was indeed a unique experience. The descendants of the artists appraised CCA’s initiative and provided exclusive materials which supplemented the narrative element of the educational program. 

By the end of the research phase, we realized that it was impossible to talk about all female Armenian artists of the 20th century in a single session of the program. Not only were locals interested in the program, but numerous tourists and foreign visitors, impressed and very eager to learn more, expressed a desire to obtain some kind of a publication about the female Armenian artists of the 20th century. 

Each session of Women in Armenian Art educational program started with a viewing of the exhibition, Tereza Mirzoyan 100. This was followed by a presentation about the lives and works of the following female artists, often forgotten, who were Tereza Mirzoyan’s contemporaries: Armine Kalentz, Arpenik Nalbandyan, Aytsemnik Urartu, Gohar Fermanyan, Hripsime Simonyan, Knarik Hovhannisyan, Knarik Vardanyan, Lida Khanamiryan, Marie Hakobyan, and Ruzan Kyurkchyan. 

At the end of the program, on a pre-made map, participants pinned miniature versions of the presented artists’ artworks installed in different parts of the city and various galleries. They also received special booklets referring to the original artworks. It was intended for the participants to “follow” the female artists and explore the artworks around the city.    

The artworks of the 11 female artists are around us. Passing by some of those artworks, people often don’t even notice those or, having noticed, do not know the name of the artist. Many of those artworks are in a bad condition. During the research phase, we were saddened and even shocked to see a sculpture by Aytsemnik Urartu which was trashed. The most touching moment of this educational program was how a group of participants found Aytsemnik Urartu’s sculpture and cleaned the trash. When we received the photos of the sculpture and realized that the trash was cleaned, we were very touched, encouraged, and proud.  

European Dimension

European Heritage Days have been celebrated at the Cafesjian Center for the Arts (CCA) since its opening in 2009, presenting a rich program of events, curatorial tours, and educational programs. In 2019, the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture, and Sport of the Republic of Armenia acknowledged the Cafesjian Center for the Arts with a Certificate of Gratitude for its programming of the European Heritage Days. 

Women in Armenian Art educational program won the “Best Educational Program in Museums” prize within the Adult Learning and Education Popularization campaign subproject organized by the Armenian Branch of DVV International.  

 In 2012, CCA launched the Inter-Museum Cooperation Program, creating collaboration opportunities with many other local and regional museums. The educational program, Women in Armenian Art, was based on the retrospective exhibition, Tereza Mirzoyan 100, which was organized through our inter-museum cooperation program. Many exhibited artworks were brought to the capital city Yerevan from regional museums and were addressed in the educational program.   

Gender equality was a fundamental topic underlying the educational program Women in Armenian Art. Tereza Mirzoyan’s solo exhibition was the spark that led to the creation of this educational program, which, in turn, revealed about 10 other female artists who were Mirzoyan’s contemporaries, mostly unknown or forgotten. Their lives, works, and fates have become the backbone of the narrative about the perseverance of female figures who are so often overlooked. These women were fighting for their right to be artists and exercise artistic freedom, while simultaneously being wives and mothers. Through this educational program, we discovered and reevaluated the legacy the female artists left after living and creating in such a challenging time as the Armenia of the 20th century. 

Many Armenian artists, including female ones, had the opportunity to receive education in Europe and, after returning to Armenia, they brought the traditions of European art. We discovered numerous female Armenian artists from the Armenian Diaspora who repatriated to Armenia and enriched the local arts scene with new cultural layers.

 Teenagers, compared to other age groups, visit museums less. This educational program was intended for 15+ participants and adults. In this sense, it is highly important to raise awareness about historical and cultural heritage among young adults and nurture a caring attitude toward it. 

Representing one of the leading contemporary art centers in the heart of Yerevan, Armenia, and the region, we have great confidence that the educational program, Women in Armenian Art, of the Cafesjian Center for the Arts will be successful in its range of influence – both locally and internationally.  

The Cafesjian Center for the Arts is dedicated to bringing the best of contemporary art to Armenia and presenting the best of Armenian culture to the world. Having celebrated its grand opening in November 2009, CCA continues to exhibit unique works of modern and contemporary art, offers a wide variety of exhibitions and a diverse program of lectures, films, concerts, and numerous educational initiatives for children and adults. Annual visitation of the Cafesjian Center for the Arts exceeds 1,000,000 people.