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03/17/2006
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WEBSITE AT <;HTTP://WWW.ASBAREZ. COM 1) Turkey Has Less Than Two Years to Meet EU's Political Accession Criteria 2) Fifty House Members Call on Foreign Aid Appropriators to Maintain Military Aid Parity to Armenia And Azerbaijan 3) US Urges Turkey to Open Border with Armenia 4) Armenian Organizations Demand Introduction of Armenian as State Language 5) Authorities in Tabriz Assure Normalization of Situation 6) Courts Allow Turkish Demonstration in Berlin 7) ANCA Joins Armenian Bar Association-Led Coalition in Fighting Armenian Genocide Denial in Massachusetts 8) Burbank ANC Organizes Armenian Genocide Art And Essay Contest 9) Armenian Genocide Documentary to Be Honored at 2006 Midwest Journalism Conference in April 10) Armenia Fund Reconstructs Artik Hospital 11) Third Pan-Armenian Writers' Conference to Be Held in Antelias 12) Element Band Presents Armenian CD Yev O Phe 13) Critics' Forum: Visual Arts: By Ara Oshagan 1) Turkey Has Less Than Two Years to Meet EU's Political Accession Criteria BRUSSELS--Noting the slowing pace of reform in Turkey, the European Parliament has called on the Turkish government to take immediate steps to ends its discriminatory and repressive policies. In its recently adopted resolution on the "Commission's 2005 Enlargement Strategy Report," the Parliament called on the European Commission to define the geographical boundaries of the European Union. This report, prepared by Elmar Brok, a Conservative from Germany, Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, aims to formulate a comprehensive enlargement policy before focusing on candidate nations (Macedonia, Western Balkans) and countries in negotiation (Turkey, Croatia). In the section of the report dedicated to Turkey, the European Parliament states that the priorities outlined in the Accession Partnership "have to be accomplished in the first phase of the negotiations" and "notes with satisfaction that the Commission now supports this view as well by stating that those criteria have to be fulfilled within one or two years." Based on these considerations, the Parliament therefore called on Turkey "to present as soon as possible a plan, including a timetable and specific measures, to meet these deadlines," and urged the Commission and the Council "to make the progress of the negotiations conditional on the timely accomplishment of those priorities." This demand comes in reaction to the slowing down of Turkey's reforms, which were noted in the resolution. The Parliament also formally asked Turkey "to remove all existing legislative and practical obstacles to full enjoyment of fundamental rights and freedoms by all Turkish citizens, notably freedom of expression, religious freedom, cultural rights and the rights of minorities." The Resolution also urged the Commission "to conduct a rigorous and thorough scrutiny of developments on the ground." The adopted text--for the first time in European Union history--also recalled that "the capacity for absorption of the Union...remains one of the conditions for the accession of new countries" and stressed that "defining the nature of the European Union, including its geographical borders, is fundamental to understanding the concept of absorption capacity." Thus, the Parliament requested that that Commission submit a report by December 31, 2006 "setting out the principles which underpin this concept" and invites it "to factor this element into the overall negotiation timetable." "We welcome the adoption of this resolution as a true expression of the growing will of the European Parliament to be involved in the Union's decision-making processes. This measure--like the many previously adopted resolutions on this matter--urges the European Commission and Council to not be satisfied with pledges and prolonged delays, but rather to demand genuine reforms in Turkey," said Hilda Tchoboian, Chairperson of the European Armenian Federation. "We are working with European democratic movements in order to require that Turkey meet its criteria within the next two years--including its full recognition of the Armenian genocide and the abandonment of its aggressive policies toward Armenia." 2) Fifty House Members Call on Foreign Aid Appropriators to Maintain Military Aid Parity to Armenia And Azerbaijan WASHINGTON, DCCongressmen Frank Pallone (D-NJ) and George Radanovich (R-CA) were joined by forty-eight of their House colleagues today in urging the leadership of the House Foreign Operations Subcommittee to support pro-Armenian provisions in the fiscal year 2007 foreign aid bill, reported the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA). Members of Congress cosigned a letter, addressed to the panel's Chairman Jim Kolbe (R-AZ) and Ranking Member Nita Lowey (D-NY), which would strengthen the hand of pro-Armenian members of the Subcommittee, most notably Armenian Caucus Co-Chairman Joe Knollenberg, Steve Rothman (D-NJ), Mark Kirk (R-IL), and John Sweeney (R-NY). Representative Sweeney, who joined the panel last year, is one of only two Members of Congress of Armenian heritage. The letter notes that members of Congress are "deeply troubled" that the Administration's request for military aid for Azerbaijan is considerably higher then the request for Armenia. By signing the letter, legislators will add their voice to the effort to ensure that the agreement struck in 2001 between the White House and Congress to keep aid levels to these two countries equal is fully respected. In addition, the letter calls for a hard earmark of at least $75 million for Armenia, a one-year $5 million allocation for Karabagh, and the preservation of Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act. Members of Congress joining Representatives Pallone and Radanovich in cosigning the letter included: Reps. Tom Allen (D-ME), Robert Andrews (D-NJ), Xavier Becerra (D-CA), Howard Berman (D-CA), Michael Bilirakis (R-FL), Eric Cantor (R-VA), Lois Capps (D-CA), Dennis Cardoza (D-CA), John Conyers (D-MI), Jim Costa (D-CA), Joseph Crowley (D-NY), William Delahunt (D-MA), David Dreier (R-CA), Chaka Fattah (D-PA), Mike Ferguson (R-NJ), Barney Frank (D-MA), Scott Garrett (R-NJ), Rush Holt (D-NJ), Michael Honda (D-CA), Dale Kildee (D-MI), James Langevin (D-RI), Sander Levin (D-MI), Frank LoBiondo (R-NJ), Stephen Lynch (D-MA), Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), Edward Markey (D-MA), Doris Matsui (D-CA), Thaddeus McCotter (R-MI), James McGovern (D-MA), John McHugh (R-NY), Michael McNulty (D-NY), Martin Meehan (D-MA), Grace Napolitano (D-CA), Donald Payne (D-NJ), Collin Peterson (D-MN), Bobby Rush (D-IL), H. James Saxton (R-NJ), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Joe Schwarz (R-MI), Christopher Shays (R-CT), Brad Sherman (D-CA), Rob Simmons (R-CT), Mark Souder (R-IN), Edolphus Towns (D-NY), Diane Watson (D-CA), Henry Waxman (D-CA), Anthony Weiner (D-NY), and Lynn Woolsey (D-CA). Representatives Knollenberg, Pallone, and Rothman also submitted individual letters citing their foreign aid priorities for Armenia and Karabagh, among other countries. The House Foreign Operations panel is set to review the FY 2007 foreign aid bill, which will then be considered by the full Appropriations Committee and then the full US House of Representatives. The Senate will finalize its own version, which will be reconciled with the House bill by a conference committee. 3) US Urges Turkey to Open Border with Armenia ANKARA (Armenpress)--US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Daniel Fried and the OSCE Minsk Group US Co-Chair Steven Mann met in Turkey Friday with Turkish officials to discuss the Karabagh conflict settlement, Ankara-Yerevan relations, and energy issues. During the meeting, Fried urged Turkey to open up its border with Armenia as a step toward normalization of relations between the two countries, Anatolia News Agency reported. Fried said that the opening of the border between Armenia and Turkey will be beneficial for the two countries and the whole region. He said US will support it. The Turkish side refused, saying that it defends Azerbaijan and will not open its border with Armenia unless progress is made in the Karabagh conflict and Armenia steps back from its demand for recognition of the Armenian genocide. Referring to the Armenian genocide, Fried said that Turkey should seriously recognize the mistakes it has made in the past. Fried said, "The tragedies should be recognized. People must be truly and bravely interested in the issue. At the same time it is necessary to think of the future of the two nations." The US official also discussed with Turkish officials Iran's nuclear program and the Cyprus issue. Turkey and the United States share concern over the Iranian nuclear issue, but officials from both sides agree that it should be resolved through diplomatic means, Anatolia said. 4) Armenian Organizations Demand Introduction of Armenian as State Language AKHALKALAK (Armenpress)The Virk and Javakhk organizations, which are based in the Armenian populated Georgian region of Javakhk, have demanded that Armenian receive the status of a second state language in the region. The organizations prepared a letter of appeal to the Georgian Parliament at a Thursday meeting in Akhalkalak. According to them, since the majority of the local population is of Armenian origin, they must be able to conduct official business in the Armenian language. Representatives of Virk and Javakhk also point out that Armenians already suffer frequent discrimination because of their ethnicity. They say Armenians are not hired as public officers and are often replaced by Georgians who come to Javakhk from other regions of Georgia. 5) Authorities in Tabriz Assure Normalization of Situation TEHRAN (Alik)--An Azeri satellite television station operating in Iran has been disseminating Anti-Armenian propaganda and calling on the local population to engage in anti-Armenian demonstrations. Kevork Vardanian, Iranian Member of Parliament representing the Northern Iran Armenian community, went to Tabriz last Tuesday to check on the hostile situation created by the Azeri TV station. Vardanian has also been in touch with the governor's and interior minister's office in the meantime. He was assured that all the necessary security measures have been taken by the Iranian government to prevent an inter-ethnic clash between the local Azeri population and the Armenian community. "We were at the Prelacy until midnight and fortunately nothing happened. The local security officials called me and the Prelate to assure us that the situation is under control and nothing will happen. The most important thing, however, is that the Armenian community of Tabriz is leading a normal life and last week's concerns have all disappeared," he said. Vardanian also informed that local authorities visited the church and assured the public that "the security of the Armenian community is the responsibility of the Iranian security apparatus and that they will guarantee that." 6) Courts Allow Turkish Demonstration in Berlin --Demonstrators cannot deny Genocide The German Court of Appeals allowed on Friday a demonstration organized by Turks against the recognition of the Armenian genocide and in honor of Talaat Pasha to be held Saturday, March 18. The court has allowed the controversial demonstration, but forbade demonstrators from denying the Genocide either verbally or in writing. The court also called on the police to strictly enforce this decision. The Berlin Police Department wanted the demonstration to be banned completely because they feared violence would erupt and because they suspected demonstrators would try to both deny and glorify the Armenian genocide. 7) ANCA Joins Armenian Bar Association-Led Coalition in Fighting Armenian Genocide Denial in Massachusetts WASHINGTON, DC--The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) has joined with a broad coalition of civil rights organizations in filing an amicus curiae (friend of the court) brief in Massachusetts Federal District Court to oppose attempts by the Assembly of Turkish American Associations (ATAA) to mandate the inclusion of Armenian genocide denial material in Massachusetts' genocide curriculum guide. The coalition led by the Armenian Bar Association, also includes the Irish Immigration Center, the Jewish Alliance for Law and Social Action, and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). In support of the State of Massachusetts, the coalition filed its brief on March 8 urging the dismissal of the complaint filed by the ATAA, a lobbying group that actively denies the Armenian genocide and is calling for the inclusion of the ATAA website in a list of educational sources provided as part of a teacher's guide on genocide education. The complaint also calls for the addition of other websites, including that of the Embassy of the Republic of Turkey, which the ATAA had lobbied to include in the guide. These website were disqualified from the guide because they denied the Armenian genocide, contradicting the Massachusetts statute that requires the teaching of the Armenian genocide. In filing the brief, coalition members expressed their opposition to the inclusion of genocide denial material in Massachusetts' curriculum guide and refuted allegations that plaintiffs' free speech rights were violated. The brief argues, "This case is not about Plaintiffs' ability to express themselves, to receive ideas, or to access information. Nothing in the Massachusetts Guide to Choosing and Using Curricular Materials on Genocide and Human Rights has altered those rights. Rather, this case involves [Massachusetts'] right as a government to express its own official views on matters of historical importance and their place in education and to choose the specific content of its own message." Citing judicial precedent, the brief noted that courts cannot compel state governments to speak as plaintiffs demand: "The government is entitled to full control over its own speech, whether it speaks with its own voice or enlists private parties to convey its message, and the remedy for dissatisfaction with its choices is political rather than judicial." To read the entire brief, visit: ae.pdf 8) Burbank ANC Organizes Armenian Genocide Art And Essay Contest In the spirit of "learning from the past, shaping our future," the Armenian National Committee (ANC) of Burbank has organized an essay and art contest to commemorate and learn from the Armenian genocide of 1915-1923. The contests officially began in early March with the help of more than 80 English, Art, and History teachers from the Burbank Unified School District. Contest packets were distributed to teachers and student. Students in grades 10-12 were invited to take part in either the art or essay contest with the theme, "Learning From The Past, Shaping Our Future: What does the Armenian genocide mean to me?" Using any form of visual media or their own original writing, participating students of all ethnic backgrounds will have the opportunity to creatively express their thoughts and feelings about the impact of the Armenian genocide. "Our goal is to create an understanding among youth that this crime against the Armenians is not just past history and it still has a real impact on our lives today" said Tamar Krekorian, head of the Genocide Commemoration Committee of the Burbank ANC. "Through this contest, young people will learn the continuing lessons of the Armenian genocide and will be prepared to work together to prevent future atrocities." The Burbank ANC is also collaborating with a long time friend, the Burbank Public Library. The contests, running through March 24, 2006, will culminate in an award ceremony Saturday, April 1 at the Burbank Central Library. Student art will be on display and excerpts from winning essays will be read. Three winners for each contest will be awarded cash prizes. Representatives of the City of Burbank and the Burbank Unified School District present the winners with their prizes. The event is open to the public. For more information on the contest, visit <;www.burbankanc.o rg. 9) Armenian Genocide Documentary to Be Honored at 2006 Midwest Journalism Conference in April A Regional Emmy nominated documentary about the Armenian genocide, The Armenian Genocide: 90 Years Later, will be honored at the 2006 Midwest Journalism Conference in Bloomington, Minnesota. The event, which is sponsored by the Northwest Broadcast News Association in memory of journalist Eric Sevareid, will take place April 1. As part of an ongoing series by the Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies in Minnesota (CHGS) about genocide and its lingering effects, [The Armenian Genocide: 90 Years Later] aired on public television in Minnesota last April and was nominated for the 2005 Regional Emmy in the category of "Best News Special." The documentary, which is being honored in the Talk and Public Affairs category, discusses events that led to the Genocide, issues related to Genocide recognition, and its effects on Turkish democracy. The film also addresses current issues about revisionism and the repression of viewpoints that deviate from the official position in Turkey. The program discusses this phenomenon and raises questions about how the issue of the recognition of the Armenian genocide fits into the context of understanding the current status of Turkish democracy, academic freedom in universities, and issues involving language and identity for minorities. Most poignant in the program is the testimony of those whose family members survived the Genocide and lived to tell about it. They discuss how the memory of the Genocide is embedded in the identity of many Armenians. Discussants include Taner Akçam, Stephen Feinstein, and Eric Weitz, from the University of Minnesota, as well as descendants of survivors, and members of the community who explore issues related to the genocide. The documentary is a co-production of Twin Cities Public Television and the University of Minnesota Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies, (CHGS) and is distributed by the Armenian Genocide Resource Center in Richmond California through a special arrangement with CHGS. The Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies in Minnesota has been at the forefront of education on the Armenian genocide for many years. It was established as an Independent Center with its main administrative relationship with the Department of History. CHGS is also affiliated with The Institute for Global Studies, The Humanities Institute, Department of German, Dutch and Scandinavian Languages, The Human Rights Program at the University of Minnesota School of Law, and The Center for European Studies. Its director, Professor Stephen Feinstein, has been at the helm of the Center since its creation in 1997 and has expanded its website to include eyewitness survivor testimonies, documents, teaching guides, online streaming video and audio, and other materials about the Armenian genocide. Some of the materials were provided to the Center over the years by the Armenian Genocide Resource Center (AGRC), including an expanded reference guide for teachers and students, and are available through its website. The Armenian Genocide: 90 Years Later DVD is available from AGRC for a special price of $14.95 plus $4.00 shipping and handling. Send check or money order to AGRC, 5400 McBryde Avenue, Richmond, CA 94805. 10) Armenia Fund Reconstructs Artik Hospital YEREVANThe British affiliate of Armenia Fund has embarked on a vital hospital reconstruction project in the Republic of Armenia. The Artik Hospital the Shirak Region of Armenia will undergo major renovation in order to meet the growing needs of the region. Presently, the project is in its design stage. The scope of the reconstruction will include strengthening of the building and its foundation, construction of a boiler-house, installation of a modern heating system, as well as installation of new doors and windows. The hospital will also undergo crucial seismic retrofitting in order to prevent collapse in case of an earthquake. In addition to key structural upgrades, new restroom facilities will be built and new flooring will be installed throughout the facility. Part of the new plan will encompass a new electrical conduit system, as well as safe and reliable wiring throughout the building. After its completion, the hospital will have a new, independent sewage system. The surrounding landscape of the hospital will be redesigned as well. After a close assessment of the hospital, healthcare specialists determined that the condition of the hospital is critically deteriorating. Construction experts revealed major structural damage due to a lack of repair and maintenance over the years. Over the past twenty years, the hospital has been moderately renovated. Unfortunately, the catastrophic earthquake of 1988 crippled the hospital's structural support and foundation structure. Currently, only one out of four buildings is being used for patient care. The hospital currently has 40 beds and serves as the main healthcare facility for the town of Artik. Due to a lack of readily available healthcare facilities, the hospital serves the Shirak region's growing 60,000 population. Armenia Fund plans to expand patient capacity as soon as reconstruction works are completed. Armenia Fund, Inc., is a non-profit 501(c)(3) tax-exempt corporation established in 1994 to facilitate large-scale humanitarian and infrastructure development assistance to Armenia and Karabagh. Armenia Fund, Inc. is the US Western Region affiliate of "Hayastan" All-Armenian Fund. 11) Third Pan-Armenian Writers' Conference to Be Held in Antelias ANTELIAS (Combined Sources)--The Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia, based in Antelias, Lebanon, will host the third Pan-Armenian Writers' Conference on April 6-9, according to a press release by the preparatory Committee. The conference will be the third meeting of writers from Armenia and the diaspora. In consultation with the presidency of the Union of Writers of Armenia, the Committee has already sent invitations to writers in Armenia, Karabagh, and the diaspora. More than 170 writers from Armenia, Karabagh, Syria, Lebanon, Iran, Turkey, Egypt, Cyprus, France, Germany, Greece, Switzerland, England, Australia, Georgia, the United States and Canada have already accepted the invitations. All writers can participate in the conference. Interested individuals can contact the preparatory Committee for more information by emailing christian-edu@cathcil.org. 12) Element Band Presents Armenian CD Yev O Phe --Band incorporates sounds of Europe and the Mediterranean, while maintaining purity of original compositions Titled Yev O Phe, Element Band's first Armenian CD brings a refreshing and long-awaited sound to Armenian music by partnering distinct vocals with colorful, warm, and exotic arrangements. While the sounds of Europe and the Mediterranean come to life through the use of classical guitar, violin, bass, accordion, bouzouki, mandolin, and keyboard, Yev O Phe remains free to be distinctively Armenian. The band takes great pains to keep the Armenian songs pure, but uses bold arrangements and genuine sounds of instruments to introduce exciting twists and compositions of traditional songs. Element Band first captured the attention of audiences with their performance at the John Anson Ford Theatre in May 2005, as the opening act for the French gypsy band Bratsch. They later opened for the legendary Demis Roussos at the Kodak Theater in November 2005. Element Band members include Ara Dabandjian (arrangements, keyboards, classical guitar, accordion, string instruments), Saro Koujakian (songwriter, vocals, guitar), Gars Sherbetdjian (vocals), Shant Mahserejian (violin), and Jeremy Millado (bass). Yev O Phe During the Middle Ages, as a result of greater and more enduring contact between Armenia and the West, the 36-letter Armenian alphabet incorporated two additional letters, o and phe, to better reproduce the sounds of European tongues--all the while, needless to say, remaining utterly Armenian. As a result, the modern Armenian alphabet can almost perfectly replicate the pronunciations of various languages. So it is with Element's Armenian compositions that incorporate the sounds of Europe and the Mediterranean, while remaining untethered, simply free... to be Armenian--uniquely. Yev O Phe will be available on March 19 at , , , and at a store near you. 13) Critics' Forum: Visual Arts Of Man and Nature, Layers and Fragments: The Art of Vasken Brudian By Ara Oshagan Vasken Brudian is an architect and artist. He has held one solo exhibition, but his work has been part of many group shows across the country over the past few years. After a long hiatus, Brudian has returned to the art scene with brand new work and the publication of a monograph titled, "Paintings and Collages: Towards a New Aesthetics." In conjunction with this publication, Brudian's work will be on display in a solo exhibit at the Harvest Gallery in Glendale, from March 24 to April 2. Brudian's work draws together a wide array of concepts and ideas and employs a plethora of media: from architectural drawings, paint, acrylic and ink, to photography, alphanumeric texts, philosophical writings, poetry, literature, and essays by well-known writers. And complementing his range, the sizes of his works also vary from the very intimate to ones over 20 feet in length. His work is expansive and inter-disciplinary and does not lend itself to easy categorization. It attempts to strike a difficult and delicate balance of form, color, and concept. Brudian is best known for his "architectural paintings"though these two words are not nearly sufficient to describe what this work is. These "paintings" are the product of a process that combines free-hand painting (the paint and brush) with modern technology-based methods (the computer and plotter). Paint and pencil is used to begin a painting on a surface, typically mylar. Then, after it is dry, architectural forms (everything from lines to beams to numbers to sections of buildings and stairways) are drawn over it with a large-scale plotter. Then more paint is added, then more plotting. This process is repeated several times, layer upon layer, until a dense and multi-storied canvas emerges. Obliteration is used as a tool of construction here. Each layer fully or partially obliterates the one before it. It obliterates and also fuses into it and builds on top of itconstructing a painting in the same way one constructs a building, perhaps. Technology is inherent to the creation of these worksthey cannot be conceived or made without the use of computer technology. The end result of this process is that paint and architectural fragments are held in tension, the fierce linearity of bits and bytes tussle with the free-flow of the hand, instinct is interwoven with technology. Are the two fusing or clashing? This is a question that is raised by Brudian over and over again. In his monograph, Brudian includes some of this earlier work but also adds a host of new work, some of it continuing in the vein of architectural painting and some of it departing from it completely. The new work takes its inspiration from various literary works, poems, and essays. These fragmentary textual references are a strong presence, and they also serve as platform on which Brudian develops his explorations of various themes. This series also introduces photographic images, mainly landscapes. And although they are at times altered, their essential photographic quality is retained. In the new work, these large natural landscapes are fragmented and altered and then juxtaposed with fragmentary texts or abstractions or architectural paintings. Nature, as a concept, makes itself known. Where the landscape photograph is brought together with poetic fragments, the result is overtly and simply emotional. "The Caged Bird"which combines a scenic landscape photograph cast to red with Maya Angelou's verse about a bird singing of freedomis idyllic in its presentation of nature and the bird's romantic musings about freedom. "Two Butterflies," which presents a very similar idyllic and idealized scene of nature, adds poetry by Emily Dickinson about waltzing butterflies. It is nearly impossible to not imagine butterflies waltzing in those trees or to not see the flight of a bird. These works are like reveries, simple invitations to stop and contemplate nature, to bathe in the serenity and emotional flow of verse and landscape. It's quite a leap from these pieces to the much more challenging and compelling ones that bring together nature and man via architecture and technology. This work is a direct continuation of Brudian's architectural paintings but extends their reach significantly. While the earlier work was based on a process of layering and melding of diverse forms, Brudian's new work begins with a clash, a conflict, but goes furtherthat is, it turns in on itself. In his best work, Brudian tiptoes along the razor-sharp edge between man and nature, conflict and harmony, instinct and technology. These larger canvases are composed of two totally distinct and disparate partsa color-washed photographic scene of nature on one side and a Brudian-style architectural painting on the other. The works are juxtaposed and placed next to each other and forced to inhabit the same frame. The two sides of the frame are pitted against each other, and while in one moment they are clashing and tussling, in the next they suddenly seem to flow together in a strange harmony. The best example of this is "/Twisting the Separatix/," where underneath a serene row of upright trees (cast to blue) mad architectural forms crisscross. At first, it seems the ground ends and underneath the soil, architecture and art begin, i.e. manthe dividing line, the front is demarcated, the trenches are dug. But then, those architectural lines and forms begin to echo strange rootscold, hard rootsthat seem to feed the trees themselves, and suddenly the two parts of the canvas flow into each other, give and take from each other. Nature and man are at war, yes, but also at peace and perhaps even nurturing one another. The work, at its best, is a constantly shifting perspective, asking and answering and suddenly losing hold of the answer and questioning again. The effect is thought-provoking and inquisitive: are the two sides clashing or complementing each other? What is the relationship between the natural and the man-made? These are the critical questions Brudian poses in his work. Brudian's monograph is a bold attempt at embracing a plethora of diverse and difficult concepts, using nearly as many diverse media. In his best pieces, he manages to strike a delicate balance between a host of extremesideas, forms, and colors, all pulling in different directions. Brudian's reentry into the art world is refreshing and welcome. Ara Oshagan has degrees in Physics and English Literature from UCLA and a degree in Geophysics from UC Berkeley. He used to be a scientist and now is a photographer. But everything still comes from Literature. You can reach him or any of the other contributors to Critics' Forum at comments@criticsforum.org. This and all other articles published in this series are available online at To sign up for a weekly electronic version of new articles, go to Critics' Forum is a group created to discuss issues relating to Armenian art and culture in the diaspora. All subscription inquiries and changes must be made through the proper carrier and not Asbarez Online. ASBAREZ ONLINE does not transmit address changes and subscription requests. (c) 2006 ASBAREZ ONLINE. All Rights Reserved. ASBAREZ provides this news service to ARMENIAN NEWS NETWORK members for academic research or personal use only and may not be reproduced in or through mass media outlets. --Boundary_(ID_jwqj3O+APTY7OLnOXyXc4Q)--