Armen Ashotyan
RA Minister of Education and Science
It gives me great pleasure to congratulate all the professors, students and the alumni of Yerevan State Fine Arts Academy on the occasion of its 65th anniversary. The devotees of Armenian culture Ara Sargsian, Martiros Sarian, Gabriel Gyurjian, Souren Stepanian, Eduard Issabekian, Ara Bekarian, Arpenik Nalbandian and others made a valuable contribution to the establishment and development of this educational isntitution. Today the Academy has assumed responsibility to not only preserve centuries-old cultural traditions of our people, but also educate aspiring artists with commitment to maintaining their national identity alongside new ideas in contemporary art. I am sure that reforms in higher education institution will open new perspectives both for the development of the Academy and the promotion of its international recognition.
One again congratulations on this notable event.
I wish all of us every continued success in the years to come.
A few words about the role of Yerevan State Academy of
Fine arts
Vigen Ghazaryan
RA Honoured Cultural Worker, PhD, Associate
National Academy of Sciences of Armenia,
Head of the Chair of Theory and History of Fine Arts, Professor
We usually speak about the galaxy of poets and writers of the first quarter of the 20th century who worked during the most dramatic times of our existence. Another group of outstanding artists and musicians, who were less known to the public, paved the way for new Armenian national fine arts and music. The majority of these artists, whose legacy has preserved, as well as those whose heritage partly survived, were the prime vehicle for the new art in Soviet Armenia. Stepan Aghajanian, Panos Terlemezian, Yeghishe Tadevossian, Martiros Sarian, Hakob Kojoyan, Sedrak Arakelian, Hovhannes Ter-Tadevossian, Vahram Gaifejian, Ara Sargsian, Souren Stepanian, Rouben Drambian, Gabriel Gyurjian and other outstanding personalities were the forerunners of new Armenain art. Most of them were graduates of the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture. Paris, Munich and Moscow were the major centers of Modern art in early 20th century. Moscow was the major venue where most of these artists trained.
Before the Great Patriotic War they taught at Yerevan Arts and Industrial Technical College which was subsequently renamed Fine Arts College after Panos Terlemezian and Gyumri Painting School after Merkurov.
The majority of artists of our homeland, as well as of the Diaspora are the alumni of the Fine Arts Academy since the time of its foundation in 1945, which was then called Theatrical and Arts Institute.
Luckily enough the first mentors of the Academy: Ara Sargsian, Martiros Sarian, Hakob Kojoyan, Souren Stepanian, Gabriel Gyurjian, Eduard Issabekian, Ara Bekarian, Vramshapuh Shakarian and others having studied in different countries, had come together to this center of arts which has played an unprecedented role for Armenian visual arts in the last 65 years. These artists differed greatly both in character and talent. However, they were unanimous in carrying out a common goal of creating unique Armenian visual arts. To this end they had to share a unity within diversity, which could be a success only if the mentor gave freedom to his apprentices and noticed their hidden aspirations. Eduard Issabekian is a perfect example of such a teacher. His students Sergey Baghdasarian, Tereza Mirzoyan and others are representatives of both traditional and contemporary Armenian visual arts. Despite the demand of the time, they were given creative freedom thanks to the first restor, academician Ara Sargsian. Thus the motto of the Academy was and remains first and foremost mastery then creative freedom. And today, living in an independent country, the lecturers of Painting and Design, as well as Decorative Applied Arts Departments follow the Academy motto under the guidance of the rector Aram Issabekian.
There certainly existed formal and non-formal art in former USSR republics including Soviet Armenia. However, within the artistic scope the borderline between those two arts was almost intangible. The so called «formality» or «affiliation» was not an obstacle for our honored Soviet painters to demonstrate freedom of expression, at the same time creating a couple of works on obligatory subjects.
Nowdays artistic freedom is often rendered into artistic or anti-artistic «arbitrariness» aimed against everything that was once considered humane, sublime or humanistic. And here too the Academy maintains the traditions of its founders and mentors.
The Fine Arts Acedemy withstood the hardships of war, blockade and the aftermath of war together with its people. It suffered human and material losses; the contry’s economy was in deep recession. Many teachers, honorary and people’s artists, sculptors and ceramists sach as: Eduard Issabekian, Ara Harutyunian, Sergey Baghdasarian, Anatoly Papian, Vahram Khachikian, Andranik Kilikian, Vagharshak Aramian, Mkrtich Sedrakian, Grigor Aghasian; art critics Yeghishe Martikian, Vahan Harutyunian, Stepan Mnatsakanian, Alexsander Manucharian and others passed away. All of them were high professionals, mostly the alumni of the elder and middle generation of the Academy. However, each had his own handwriting and artistic vision; they were merited people, followers of various stylistic trends.
They cherished the traditions of their predecessors. Today’s professors, decans, heads of chairs and young lecturers pledge to teach their students with the sam devotion. The majority of them-including the rector Aram Issabekian and pro-rector Svetlana Gevorgian – are as distinguished professionals as their predecessors. They spare no effort to preserve and expand the Academy facilities within the last decade. Instead of former old buliding, the Academy has two new renovated buildings with expanded departments of Design, Decorative Applied Arts and Fashion Design. Also new departments have been created, such as the department of Computer Graphics; new auditoria and equipped labs are opened. Subjects have become more diverse.
No one could have dreamt about all this during Soviet time. At the same time the number of both students and lecturers has increased. However, the Academy faces new challenges which will be solved in due time.
The jubilee exhibition dedicated to the 65th anniversary of the foundation of the Academy is a perfect demonstration of rich taste of its pedagogic staff. The hallmark of the faculties and chairs may often have direct or indirect impact on the artist’s creativity and style. More often, it doesn’t matter at all. The background where the artist was raised matters more. It may tell a lot about his taste and predilections, e.g. what does he like to paint or sculpt, construct or design, where does he draw his inspiration form?