ART HISTORY AND GENOCIDE

HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT OF ARMENIAN MODERN ART

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE: UNDERSTANDING ARMENIAN DIASPORA IN THE LAST HUNDRED YEARS (1895-1994)

By the end of the nineteenth century, the Armenian communities outside the Ottoman and Russian empires, with the exception of Iran and Egypt, have blended into foreign cultural, social and religious societies or, lost their ethnic Armenian identity and historical heritage. Consequently, Armenia’s political, religious, economical and artistic influences were almost annihilated. In those perturbed conditions, Armenian art had no place or direction for its survival. For centuries, Armenia suffered on the hands of foreign hostile powers such as the Babylonians, the Greeks, the Mongols, the Turks, the Persians, the Arabs, and in modern days, by Soviet Russia. The massacres of 1895-1896 and hostilities toward Armenians by Turkey’s Sultan Abdul-Hamid forced many Armenian men and women of art, humanities and science to flee the homeland. Fearing for their lives, thousands of Armenian families emigrated to the Middle East, Near East, Europe and the United States, leaving behind them, their homes, lands, assets, and most precious possessions. What they brought to the new world (s) were their talents, creativity, memories of their illustrious historical past, the determination to survive, hope in tomorrow, sorrow, pain and a national ethnic pride. The Armenian Genocide was catastrophic. It created hundreds of thousands of refugees. Although, it is true that at the end of the second world war in 1918, many Armenians returned to their homeland, a greater number of Armenian refugees remained in a state of despair outside Armenia. They were scattered all over the world. Once again, history repeats itself. With Stalin in power, thousands of Armenians were deported by Soviet Russia between 1936 and 1939. However, between 1945 and 1948, approximately 125,000 Armenians refugees in foreign countries including outstanding artists repatriated in Soviet Armenia, followed by massive waves of Diasporan Armenians between 1949-1951 and 1953-1966. During all those years, Armenian art did not really flourish in occupied Armenia. Armenian art found birth and development abroad, especially in Europe, and more particularly in France.

Photo: Heads of Armenians massacred by the Turks are shown as trophies.

By 1984, almost two million of the post-war years Armenian repatriates have already emigrated to Canada, Australia, the United States, Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Cyprus, Greece, France, Austria and few went to Italy and Germany. Today, there are more than seven millions Armenians who live outside Armenia, while there is only three million Armenians who live in the homeland. Ironically enough, those who lived abroad are more prosperous and successful than their compatriots in their beloved homeland. Ironically too, the greatest Armenian artists who made their mark on world art and world art history were the Diasporan Armenian artists!

THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE: HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE

In 1915, the brave Armenian people suffered a terrible human tragedy. While Europe was ravaged by world war one, the Turks began to slaughter the Armenian population in Armenia and in Turkish cities and towns. It was a massive Genocide. More than one million Armenians perished on the hands of the Turks. Fortunately, the Armenian’s victory at Sardarapat’s battle in 1918, near Yerevan, saved the remaining of the Armenian populace, thus enabling the Armenian survivors to establish their first 30,000 square kilometer state. April 24, 1915 marks the darkest day in Armenia's 3,000 year of majestic and painful history. A day that has left wounds in the hearts of Armenians worldwide and a stigma of infamy on the forehead of Turkey. On that bloody day, the Ottoman Turkish government began the systematic annihilation of the Armenian people; the genocide of the Armenian people. By 1922, 1.5 million Armenians have been slaughtered. I am not an Armenian, therefore, nobody can accuse me of being biased or motivated by an ethnic interest or deep rooted feeling of vengeance. As a matter of fact, I began and continued this 3 year project on my own, without the help of any Armenian; government, official, individuals and organizations alike. I did it on my own, because I am a historian who believes in accuracy and dignity in writing the world history books. The genocide did exist. The genocide destroyed families, friends, loved ones, the lives of millions of Armenian children, mothers, sisters, grandmothers, aunts, helpless elderly…The world is just watching and the world is doing nothing to help the Armenian cause. Within my limited resources, I will help, even at the expense of my own life.