Portraits of the Artists as Young Men

From Painting to Sculpture

The other two young artists, Arman Hambardzumyan and Hakob Vardanyan, have presented remarkable works of sculpture. Hambardzumyan, born in 1988, did his undergraduate work at the Henry Igityan National Art Center and his Masters at the Yerevan State Pedagogical University. But, as he put it, “formal study was not so important; more important for me was the process of coming into being.” In one of his sculptures on display, entitled “Hector,” this is most striking, for the figures of the Homeric hero with his steeds seem to grow organically out of the bronze. The piece is fashioned from many, many small pieces of bronze welded together. Bronze is what he prefers, but he also experiments with other materials and in combination. In a piece entitled “Eruption,” he has taken a piece of ancient wood from a crater. It is petrified, that is, it has turned into stone, and he has joined it with bronze and ceramics. The female figure depicted embodies this process of coming into being, of transformation from the organic into the inorganic and further, to art.

Childhood realities played an important role in his development as well. “As a child,” he recalls, “I had no toys to play with, so I was forced to make my own.” And it is true that one can find traces of this toy-making, a sense of playful creative exploration in his sculptures. Material hardship also was a factor in his education. “My father always wanted to be an artist,” he explains, “but unfortunately did not make it. So I wanted at all costs to be an artist, as I made clear even in elementary school.” That was not easy, for financial reasons and the young boy often felt alone. But now, having realized his dream, the world looks different. “I am very lucky and am very happy to be living in this period of time and to have the possibility to work with so many different materials in my artistic activity.”

Hakob Vardanyan, about the same age as Hambardzumyan, traces his interest in sculpture back to his earliest years, when he played around with modeling figures. A graduate of the Yerevan State Academy of Fine Arts, he has concentrated on bronze, his favorite material, with which, he says he “can express dynamics and emotions the best.” In the current phase of his development, he is experimenting with the relationship between cold metal and warm glass. For example, one sculpture on display, entitled “Face,” is a standing figure with one hand extended, that holds a mirror. Another, entitled “I and She,” presents two fish-like shapes in communication.

In addition to creating art, Vardanyan is an organizer. As a member of various artists associations, he says, “I like to organize symposiums in Armenia, through the internet, and have taken part personally in such in Ukraine and Georgia.” His visit to Wiesbaden marks the first time he has come to Germany and he is, in his words, “thrilled.”

Art and the Spirit of Independence

As we celebrate the twenty-fifth anniversary of Armenian independence, it is refreshing to reflect on the achievements of the generation that has come into being in the interim. Here are four artists born between 1988 and 1991, years that spanned the catastrophic earthquake, the Karabakh war, the fall of the Berlin wall and the collapse of the Soviet Union. It was a time of great tension, extreme suffering and commitment to create a new existence for the nation and its people.

These visiting artists are only four, but they embody the strength, optimism and creative energy required to build that new future. All four have been honored with prizes both at home and abroad, all four have been featured in personal shows as well as group exhibitions, too numerous to be listed here in detail. Most valuable of all is the ability they demonstrate in their paintings and sculptures to draw lessons from their study of the great art of the past in order to generate new works of beauty, to absorb and embody the spirit of their Armenian culture, while opening up to the world at large.

The Armenian artist Archi Galentz has a quotation by composer Gustav Mahler above the entrance to his atelier in Berlin, which reads, “Tradition is not to worship the ashes, but to pass on the flame, keep the fire burning.” That fire is burning and we can see the light and feel the heat.

(mirak.weissbach@googlemail.com)