Homeland 2020
As the post-war crisis intensified, the government failed to take accountability. No one was held responsible for the loss of thousands of soldiers, no trials were conducted, and no officials stepped down from their positions. Setting a chair ablaze as a symbol of power resonated deeply with me. I recalled Gunter Rambow's "Antigone" done for Frankfurt Opera in 1978, a vivid memory from my childhood, my work was also a tribute to him. Vahan Stepanyan shot the image, I wrote the text. The process of making it is documented, watch it here.
Midnight Flight in 2018 (Freedom), 100x65cm300dpi, acrylic on PVC, 2019 Private collection
At the height of my large-format experimentation in 2018, I relinquished rational control over the writing tools, focusing instead on reducing the visual expression to a series of bold, intense strokes interwoven with elements of writing.
Counter Revolution (Dogs of War) 100x65cm , acrylic on PVC, 2018 Artist Collection
This large-format poster was intended to visually represent the hostile forces, evoking the "mad dogs of war" as recalled from Pink Floyd's track of the same name. My hand moved almost unconsciously with the pump marker, but I distinctly remember the intensity of the strokes, knowing that the hard surface of PVC could withstand such force. Paper, in contrast, would have disintegrated instantly under similar pressure.
I regard this piece as one of the pinnacles of my work so far. To me, it serves as evidence that artists can intuitively sense impending events, perhaps on a cosmic level. Two years after its creation, a devastating war arrived at our doorstep. This conflict ended with Armenia's loss of Artsakh (also known as Nagorno-Karabakh) to Azerbaijan in 2020. The following year, 120,000 people were first subjected to starvation and then forcibly displaced through ethnic cleansing from their ancestral homeland.
Reality as a mental image 2023 Acrylic on PVC 118x79cm Artist Collection
I am not an abstract artist, but from 2018 onward I began making semi-abstract large compositions, which were done intuitively. It's hard to relinquish control, especially if you are trained as a figurative artist, but at the other end of the rope there is a lot to discover. I realized if I try to use less cognition and let the subconscious guide my hand, then something takes over and the energy which is transmitted to the surface is somewhat uninterrupted by flow of thinking.
Armenian Genocide in Graphic & Art Posters (2001-present)
We are an annual international graphic poster competition commemorating the Armenian Genocide through series of designs, published and distributed in countries which have no legislation on Armenian Genocide. It's a part of a collective effort to demonstrate the impact of art, as one of the most powerful tools for the portrayal of historical events and the shaping of public opinion for the main purpose of spreading awareness and promoting greater international cooperation and involvement in the cause of Armenian Genocide recognition.
Time Is The Fire In Which We Burn (dedicated to the people of Musa Dagh) 2001
Still Waiting For The Fair Trial (Memory of Haygan Mardikjan) 2001
This project had started during my work in the Netherlands in early 2001. Amsterdam had (still has, only growing) a sizable Turkish presence and only few thousand Armenians. The city once had a large Armenian community which started with carpet trading between Persia and Flanders in early Middle Ages, but it was almost entirely assimilated by now. In 2001 in the Netherlands the question of the recognition of the Armenian genocide was not in the agenda. An international design competition was announced and we published 5 posters in April of 2001, which were displayed on the eve of the Genocide commemoration throughout Amsterdam. We believe the project contributed to the recognition of the Armenian genocide by Dutch Parliament in 2018.
Syrian Desert, 2011
2015 Best Digital Entry at Centennial Art Contest of LA City Council.
The Dark Chain Of Human History, 2001
Los Angeles, 2022 Photo by Araz Artinian