“Searching for Paradise” Art Exhibition by Ararat Sarkissian

AUA Akian Gallery in partnership with Antikyan Gallery, presents Khachkars (traditional Armenian memorial cross-stones) and Aybubens (alphabets) on hand-made paper by Ararat Sarkissian. At the opening night, the artist will demonstrate the age-old tradition of paper making.
40 % of proceeds from the sale of artwork will be donated to preserving Armenian cultural heritage by the AUA Digital Library of Armenian Literature, the most comprehensive repository of Armenian digital texts in the world.
Ararat Sarkissian’s art expresses the retention of experience, of identity and of memory. Sarkissian’s work, post-modern, conceptual, and abstract in part, makes reference to ancient cultures, and not only to the important medieval tradition of Armenian illuminated manuscripts but also to the wider art of medieval and renaissance Europe. Ararat Sarkissian is a Member of the European Academy of Natural Sciences and International Association of Art and Honored Artist of the Republic of Armenia, and participates in international art expos and exhibitions around the world. In 2013, he presented Armenia in the Venice Art Biennale.
Artist Statement:
“I have always believed that a cross stone is a living thing. I went on to painstakingly recreate cross stones that were razed to the ground in Nakhichevan, attempting to give these vanished monuments a new lease on life through paint and hand-made paper”.
Organizer: Office of Communications
Email: communications@aua.am
Venue: Akian Art Gallery