Armenia at the Venice Biennale


Paris-based Nina Khemchyan will represent Armenia at the Venice Biennale
 
Armenia will be represented at the 60th Venice Biennale, which will be held from April 20 to November 24, by the multi-layered multimedia project entitled "Response" by Paris-based Nina Khemchyan. Through art, Nina Khemchyan will talk about the Armenian medieval heritage, which is endangered today, and will touch on the themes of identity, memory and belonging. The commissar of the pavilion is Svetlana Sahakyan, head of the modern art department of the Ministry of Education. The co-organizer and main sponsor of the pavilion is the "Gafesjian" Art Center. The curator of the national pavilion is Armen Yesayants, director of GAC exhibitions.
Anahit Margaryan talked to Armen Yesayants, the curator of the Armenian pavilion at the Venice Biennale, the exhibition director of the Cafesjian Art Center, and Elizaveta Shirinyan, the director of education, in "Artfocus".

Splendid and beautiful Holy Etchmiadzin


The light radiating from the Mother Church has kept the Armenian nation steadfast
 
In the Ruben Sevak Museum of the Mother See, the presentation of the picture book "Splendid and beautiful Holy Etchmiadzin" took place. It presents more than 60 works of artists depicting the Cathedral. The author used museum archives and private collections. The picture book is an ode to the Mother Cathedral and is dedicated to the 25th anniversary of the enthronement of Karekin II, Patriarch of All Armenians.
 
 Anahit Margrayan's guest at "Artfocus" is Asoghik Abegha Karapetyan, the author of the picture book and the director of the museums and archives of the Mother See.

The new reforms of the theater


The spirit of time must enter the Yerevan State Institute of Theater and Cinematography
 
A period of great reforms has begun in YSITC, in order for the university to serve modern requirements. The best cinematographers of Armenia were invited to the institute, who not only teach, but also take students with them to film. An agreement was reached with one of the television companies to jointly use the booths. Students have the opportunity to stage plays. What is the path of development of Yerevan State Institute of Theater and Cinematography?
Anahit Margrayan's guest in "Artfocus" is Sara Nalbandian, the rector of the YSITC.

Frescoes of Akhtala monastery


Rev. Fr. Hetum Tarverdyan published the treasures of the Akhtala monastery
 
In the Komitas Museum-Institute, the presentation of the book "Mural Paintings of the Holy Mother of God church of Akhtala" by  Rev. Fr. Hetum Tarverdyan took place. The book tells about the frescoes of the monastery, patrons and masters who created them. At the "Artfocus" pavillion, the author told about the work of Rev. Fr. Hetum Tarverdyan, dedicated to the 800-year-old wall paintings with an area of ​​960 square meters preserved in the Holy Mother of God Monastery of the Akhtala monastery complex, one of the priceless gems of Armenian and world architecture and culture. The program was hosted by Anahit Margaryan.

String quartet concert


The inaugural concert of the "Avetis" string quartet will take place
 
On March 12, the debut concert of the "Avetis" string quartet will take place at the Chamber Music House named after Komitas. Three of the musicians play in the National Philharmonic Orchestra of Armenia. Carmen Tosunyan is the concertmaster, Hayk Ter-Hovhannisyan is the concertmaster of the Philharmonic viola group, Mikayel Navasardyan is a musician of the cello group. Violinist Anush Nikoghosyan is active in concerts as a soloist and chamber musician. Violinist Anush Nikoghosyan and viola player Hayk Ter-Hovhannisyan presented their activities

The Armenian "Our Lady of Armenia" choir was invited from the Vatican to sing hymns


On the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, the performance of the liturgy by the "Our Lady of Armenia" choir in St. Peter's Cathedral in Rome was an exceptional event. Until then, no liturgy was held in St. Peter's by a foreign choir. Moreover, during the Pope's visit to Armenia, the choir of "Our Lady of Armenia" sang again at the liturgy in Gyumri. How did the choir get that exclusive invitation? At the "Artfocus" pavillion, the artistic director and chief conductor of the Armenian State Chamber and "Tiramayr Armenia" choirs, Robert Mlkeyan, presented the details.

Urartian heritage


The exhibition of Urartian heritage in Moscow has ended

More than 400 exhibits were presented at the exhibition "The Kingdom of Urartu: The Heritage of Ancient Armenia: Urashtu-Harminua-Armina" in the Pushkin Museum. During the last 5 months, the visitors of the museum had the opportunity to discover the transition and interaction of pre-Urart, Urart and post-Urart times, the state system, religious concepts, arts and crafts.

The results and achievements of the exhibition were presented at the "Artfocus" pavillion by the director of the "Erebuni" historical and archaeological reserve-museum, Mikael Badalyan.

Details of the Winter Book Festival


On February 10, the "Winter Festival" of the "Newmeg" publishing house will take place at the "Dvin" music hall. This year, the publishing house has turned the "Winter Festival" into a celebration of literature and modern art. On that day, it will be possible to attend not only book presentations, but also theater performances, poetry evenings, concerts, exhibitions. Gnel Nalbandian, editor-in-chief of the publishing house, spoke about the "Winter Festival" of Newmag and modern publishing problems in "Artfocus".

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Feast of Holy Nativity


What tangible changes have occurred in human life since the birth of Christ? How to fully celebrate Christmas? Why has the folk tradition of learning birthday songs, hymns, and gospels died out? We talk about the sacrament of Christmas with the Dean of the Gevorgyan seminary, Proto-Archimandrite Shahe Ananyan.

 

International theater poster competition launches


One year ago, the "International Theatrical Poster Competition-Festival" was held in Armenia for the first time. The works were evaluated by the world-famous graphic designers Mishal Bator, Sergey Serov, Ebrahim Haghighi. An open call for works for the second theater poster festival will be announced soon. What will the second Armenian International Festival of Posters be like? What place does the poster occupy in the field of modern design? Graphic designer Edik Poghosyan, co-founder and head of the competition-festival, spoke about these and a number of other issues at "Artfocus". Anahit Margaryan moderated the conversation.

 

Tea party with Santa Claus


New Year's Eve is a fairy-tale atmosphere in the "Little Theater". For the performance "Tea Party with Santa Claus" the decor and structure of the theater is changed, the audience is in the center of the performance, on the stage, drinking tea with Santa Claus at the table. The year-end broadcast of "Artfocus" transports the viewer to the fairy-tale environment of the performance. The guest of the program is the director of "Little Theater" Vahan Badalyan. The program was hosted by Anahit Margrayan.

 

Edgar Baghdasaryan, "Yasha and Leonid Brezhnev"


Anahit Margaryan talked with director, screenwriter Edgar Baghdasaryan about documentary and feature films, problems of the film industry and other topics.