Author: Jalatian Sonya

RUSSIA SUPPORTED BOTH SIDES
ARMAN GALOYAN

itics&pid=14994
21:59:11 – 26/08/2009

Interview with the representative of the Armenian National Congress,
the special envoy of the Armenian president in 1992-1994 David
Shahnazaryan

Professor Frederick Star, the director of the Central Asia and Caucasus
policies at John Hopkins Institute, said in an interview with Day.az
that Russia was one of the participants of the occupation of Karabakh
and the other territories of Azerbaijan, therefore it has no right to
deploy peacekeepers in Nagorno-Karabakh. In your opinion, did Russia
participate in the liberation of Karabakh then?

Unfortunately, Fred Star is unaware of the role and participation
of Russia in the military phase of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in
1991-1994. In fact, Russia helped both sides. Before 1998 the essence
of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict was the following: there were three
political sides, Nagorno-Karabakh, Azerbaijan, Armenia, and two
fighting sides. Russia supported both sides through both political
and diplomatic steps and arms and ammunition. And at the crucial
moment it gave military and political assistance to Azerbaijan. In
December 1993 Azerbaijan launched a large-scale offensive along the
full length of the front line.

By the way, at that time we were unaware that Azerbaijan was planning
a large-scale offensive on Armenia in December. Heidar Aliyev had come
to power there, and Azerbaijan had thoroughly prepared that offensive,
invested immense funds. Heidar Aliyev had already made Azerbaijan a
member of the CIS, in return for which it expected serious compensation
from Russia. Therefore, the preparations and the military and political
actions were planned and implemented with the approval and support
of Russia.

A month before that offensive, on November 20, 1993 the special
representative of the Russian president Vladimir Kazimirov was
to arrive in Armenia from Baku. It was arranged that he come by
the famous Ghazakh-Idjevan road which was the usual road, and the
Idjevan-Ghazakh frontier point was the customary place of meetings
with Azerbaijan. There was no other road, and there is no other
road now. For whatever reason, however, without agreement with the
Armenian side, they went to Noyemberyan instead of Idjevan, while at
that time our official delegation was waiting for Kazimirov at the
Idjevan-Ghazakh frontier point. The Russian side had inquired about
the existence of another route only and was informed that no change
of route is possible.

The Azerbaijani soldiers who accompanied Kazimirov and his assistant
took the special envoy of Russia along a road which was blocked before
the line of contact by such a deep anti-tank hindrance (dug by the
Azerbaijanis) where no transport could pass. At that time there were
warning shots from our positions, in addition, the shooting occurred
when the accompanying car started approaching the line of contact. The
Azerbaijanis knew what they were doing, they had left Kazimirov’s
car behind, and they moved on, provoking our soldiers. By the way,
after this incident I met our soldiers, and they told me the details
that they did their duty.

After the shooting the Azerbaijanis went back, they had already
finished their task, and now the Russian foreign minister Kozirev spoke
on behalf of the Russian political government. And Kozirev attacked
Armenia, demanding apology at the top level, for which there was
no reason, and naturally there was no apology. We officially said
sorry for the incident, noting that those who are responsible for
this incident should be sought for outside Armenia. Kozirev took an
unprecedented step. He called the Russian ambassador to Armenia to
Moscow for a consultation.

However, as a result of the reserved and balanced, dignified
behavior of the Armenian government, the Russian-Azerbaijani joint
provocation was politically useless. Moreover, Kozirev appeared
in a funny situation (some Russian media started noting Kozirev’s
nervous statements). Kozirev pulled himself together, stopped using
that rhetoric in speaking with Armenia, and Stupishin returned to
Yerevan. (I am sure this incident will be discussed later, there are
a lot of interesting details.) I think Kazimirov was unaware of what
was awaiting him at the Armenian-Azerbaijani border. I am sorry that
in his book Kazimirov told Kozirev’s version of that incident.

Later when Azerbaijan’s large scale offensive failed, Heidar Aliyev
had to sign the ceasefire in May 1994. But those months were the
worst period of the war, and both sides had immense losses. This is
the best example of how Russia behaved during the military actions.

As to Fred Star, he had better remember that Azerbaijan launched
military actions, lost territories in the war it had launched, rejected
the ceasefire, and Chechen militants and Afghans and Russian military
pilots participated on the Azerbaijani side.

For the non-constructive stance and behavior of Azerbaijan in the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict the U.S. government used sanctions against
Azerbaijan through the resolution 907 adopted in 1992.

Today deployment of peacekeepers in Nagorno-Karabakh is discussed
a lot, and especially which countries should deploy troops. What is
your attitude?

For the time being, there is no sign that peacekeepers, I mean armed
peacekeepers will be deployed. On the contrary, there seems to be
an arrangement that unarmed peacekeepers will be deployed, that
is international observers. I think this is a serious concession on
behalf of Armenia because the presence of international peacekeepers is
necessary as a military guarantee of the security of Nagorno-Karabakh.

In your opinion, which countries must deploy peacekeeping forces?

The Armenian government must claim deployment of peacekeeping
forces besides observers. In that case, the countries should deploy
peacekeepers which do not have direct interests in the region.

Are there such countries?

The Scandinavian countries, countries of Eastern Europe could deploy
peacekeepers. In other words, the countries which have never pursued
interests in the region. Arrangements had been made in the OSCE Minsk
Group that the neighboring countries and the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs
cannot participate in the peacekeeping mission.

S. As the special envoy of the president of Armenia, David Shahnazaryan
dealt with the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and the
Armenian-Turkish relations.

E. NALBANDIAN RECEIVED THE RUSSIAN AMBASSADOR TO ARMENIA

Aysor
Aug 25 2009
Armenia

Edward Nalbandian, RA Minister of Foreign Affairs, yesterday received
Vyacheslav Kovalenko, the newly appointed Russian ambassador to
Armenia, on the occasion of handing the copies of the credentials.

Edward Nalbandian congratulated his guest and wished him success in
implementing his diplomatic mission.

Highly appreciating the Armenian -Russian relations, Edward Nalbandian
said that the mutual understanding, trust and cooperation between
Russia and Armenia serve a good basis for strengthening allied
relations and military cooperation for the general profit of the two
brother nations, and that the ambassador would support the process
of cooperation prosperity.

In his turn Vyacheslav Kovalenko appreciated the present state of
Armenian -Russian relations and added that he would do his best for
strengthening the present cooperation, and for the development of
the bilateral relations in different spheres.

At the meeting Edward Nalbandian and Vyacheslav Kovalenko discussed
a series of questions concerning the Armenian-Russian agenda, shared
thoughts on the territorial and international issues, the Information
and Press Department of MFA informs.

VASILI IVANCHUK: "I WAS PLAYING IN THE MOST CHESS-LOVER COUNTRY"

Aysor
Aug 24 2009
Armenia

As we have already informed the Ukrainian Grand Master Vasily Ivanchuk
over passed his competitors and took the first place in Jermuk FIDE
"Grand Prix" tournament list due to the victory that he took against
Vladimir Hakobyan. He was excited not only because of the victory,
but also because of the worm treatment of the organizers, about which
he was speaking with respect during the prize giving ceremony.

"I would like to thank the presents for both the tournament and the
nice evening. I am also grateful for the wonderful days that I passed
in this marvelous resort. I would like to express also my gratitude to
the organizers of the tournament and the chess players who participated
in this event. During the tournament I have felt that I am playing the
in the most chess loving country, in Armenia. It was pleasant that
the tournament was dedicated to the memory of Tigran Petrosyan. I
have learnt and will always learn the nuances of the chess art from
Tigran Petrosyan", – mentioned the Ukrainian Grand Master.

STONE GARDEN’ PUBLISHER ANNOUNCES MILESTONE SALES OF 20,000 BOOKS

Asbarez
e2%80%98stone-garden%e2%80%99-publisher-announces- milestone-sales-of-20000-books/
Aug 18, 2009

LOS ANGELES-The publishers of Armenia’s first commercial travel guide
reached a milestone in August with the news that they have sold 20,000
Armenia-subject books since the company’s founding in 1999.

The publisher, Stone Garden Productions, specializes in Armenia books
and photography, and has released titles such as "The Stone Garden
Guide: Armenia and Karabagh" (2006); "Edge of Time: Traveling in
Armenia and Karabagh" (2001) and "Out of Stone (1999)."

The 20,000-book milestone happens to coincide with the company’s
ten-year anniversary. Author-photographers Robert Kurkjian, Ph D
and Matthew Karanian, Esq., founded Stone Garden Productions in 1999
after they had each lived and worked in Armenia for five years.

Bedros Safarian, the company’s business manager, says that
he’s thrilled with the achievement, and is excited about future
projects. "The Armenia market is very small, and to have sold 20,000
copies to the community is an outstanding achievement."

Sales are not limited to the Armenian-American community,
however. According to Karanian, the company’s co-founder, non-Armenians
throughout the world have purchased their books. "We’ve shipped books
to every continent except Antarctica," says Karanian.

And their Armenia titles have been promoted on an array of media
ranging from Rick Steves on National Public Radio to publications
such as CNN Traveller, Geographical, and Photo District News. Their
Armenia photographs have been exhibited at prominent venues including
at the World Affairs Council in San Francisco, at Los Angeles City
Hall and at private galleries in New York, and Washington, DC.

Kurkjian and Karanian got their start with the hard cover art
photography book "Out of Stone." The art book retailed for $55
in 1999, and the after-market price for a good used copy has today
quadrupled to more than $200. The author-photographers launched Stone
Garden Productions as a publishing company that would be dedicated
to portraying Armenian subjects that a larger commercial publisher
might not consider.

In 2001, Stone Garden Productions became the first publisher
to release a stand-alone commercial travel guide to Armenia and
Karabagh. The current version of the travel guide, "The Stone Garden
Guide: Armenia and Karabagh," is a best selling title and winner of
three national book awards. It is one of the only guides to strongly
promote environmental conservation.

Stone Garden Productions plans to publish a new art photography
book on Armenia and Karabagh, in addition to its numerous ongoing
photography projects. To learn more about the company, visit
To purchase a postpaid copy of
their latest travel guide to Armenia, send $24.95 to Stone Garden
Productions, PO Box 7758; Northridge, CA 91327. Postage is free to
addresses in the US. Shipping outside the US is $10.

ARMENIAN REVIEW REVAMPS WEB SITE, CO-SPONSORS PANEL DISCUSSIONS

Asbarez
8/19/armenian-review-revamps-web-site-co-sponsors- panel-discussions/
Aug 19, 2009

WATERTOWN-The Armenian Review, an academic, peer-reviewed journal
featuring articles by highly acclaimed academicians, has revamped
its Web site to include indexes of past issues, including those
from the first published volumes. The Review has also been active
in co-sponsoring panel discussions with participants from various
academic institutions.

The Armenian Review editorial staff has been compiling a full index of
its issues since the first volume, which was published in 1948. Each
index listing breaks down the volume summaries by issue and includes
the article name as well as name of the author. While there are
some issues missing from the index list, the complete list will be
completed by the end of this year.

"It is essential that the full index of all of the Armenian Review’s
volumes be made available online in order to generate a renewed
interest in the enlightening scholarly papers that have revealed
countless important aspects of Armenian long, often turbulent history,
Armenia’s geopolitical standing and more importantly, the Armenian
psyche," said Dr. Asbed Kotchikian, who is the editor in chief of
the Armenian Review and is also a lecturer in political science at
Bentley University.

"We also aim to digitize the Armenian Review archives as soon as
possible with the goal of preserving them for future generations,
the logistics of which we are still evaluating," he said.

Deals have already been signed to make future issues of the Armenian
Review made available online from the educational printing services and
research databases such as Ebsco and Gale. This will allow researchers
almost immediate access to scholarly articles published in the Review
from virtually any location where an Internet connection is provided.

Since the start of 2009, the Armenian Review has co-sponsored two panel
discussions, one of which, "Subjects and Citizens: (Un)Even Relations
between Turks, Kurds, Armenians," was organized in partnership with
the Global Studies Department of Bentley University and took place
in April 2009. The panel’s participants discussed various relevant
issues related to historic and modern relations between Armenians,
Turks and Kurds.

Most recently, on August 6, a panel discussion titled "Armenia’s
Foreign Policy on Two Fronts: Recent Developments in Nagorno-Karabakh
and Turkey-Armenia Relations" was held at the National Association for
Armenian Studies and Research (NAASR) Center. The panelists discussed
recent developments related to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict resolution
and Armenia’s relations with Turkey in geopolitical contexts. NAASR
co-sponsored the event with the Armenian Review. The panelists included
Dr. Levon Chorbajian, Dr. Asbed Kotchikian and Dr. Henry Theriault.

Several more panel discussions and forums will be co-sponsored by
the Armenian Review in the months to come.

The next issue of the Armenian Review, scheduled for publishing in
September 2009, will be entirely dedicated to topics related to civil
society. There are two more issues planned for publishing during the
next six months one of which will be a special issue reflecting on
the 60th anniversary of the journal.

The Armenian Review was first published in 1948 by Hairenik Press and
soon became a leading quarterly journal featuring mainly academic
papers written by some of the most respected scholars and experts
on Armenian historical, social, political, and cultural affairs. The
publication currently prints issues twice a year.

While the newly revamped website of the Armenian Review
() is still undergoing changes and upgrades,
it is possible for interested individuals to purchase subscriptions
or pay for back issues by utilizing PayPal.

Dr. Kotchikian can be contacted by e-mail at
[email protected]. For subscriptions and back issues, please
write to [email protected].

AZERBAIJAN PLAYS OFF RUSSIA AGAINST IRAN AND U.S IN CASPIAN REGION

News.am
11:38 / 08/17/2009

Turkey refused to provide transit territory for Russian military base
logistics in Gyumri [Armenia], 1news.az reports. The source emphasizes
that after the August war, Russia lost all means to maintain military
supplies for this base.

"Iran is the only country for Russia to ensure military logistics
after Azerbaijan, Turkey and Georgia refused to provide transit to
Gyumri. Through Iran, Russia maintains entire weapons delivery to
the base, that further falls among Karabakhi separatists," Military
expert Uzeir Jafarov comments on the issue.

Jafarov’s colleague Ildrim Mamedov says Azerbaijani authorities should
bring the issue before U.S. to re-launch the Caspian Guard program
"to inspect Russia’s weapon delivery to Iran through Caspian Sea". The
expert hopes for U.S. Army Space, that "gets the Caucasus and Caspian
territories situation in hand."

According to Mamedov "it would be good if Pentagon provides us with
its intelligence data on weapon delivery through this route."

HAYK BABUKHANYAN: "ANC IS DISGRACING ITSELF LITTLE BY LITTLE"

Aysor.am
14.08.2009, 18:14

Today on the press conference Hayk Babukhanyan, the leader of
Constitutional Rights Union, presented his previsions about the
political fall of Armenia. According to the speaker changes are
expected to take place both in the political field and in governmental
institutions.

"The Armenian National Congress (ANC) is disgracing itself little
by little. The forces that are at the rudder of the government have
serious problems to prove that they can lead the country by the
correct way. I don’t see it yet as the government created by them is
a disgrace, government of the "enabled". The forces that are neither
"here" nor "there" will become active and will have a bigger role
soon", – said H. Babukhanyan.

Coming up to the possible changes in the governmental bodies Hayk
Babukhanyan mentioned that very serious changes are expected in the
government, up to the change of the prime minister.

"I feel the necessity of staff change and call the president for
realizing those changes. And the prime minister firstly", – said
H. Babukhanyan.

According to CRU leader, the rating of the prime minister of Armenia
is too low and he has to lead the country by begging and persuading
and not by changing the lows or using new administrative mechanisms.

"You can’t save the economy by reading lectures, or begging", –
said H. Babukhanyan adding that the acting government is not only
unable to find ways for pulling out the country from the global
financial crises but also there are people who have taken posts of
some Ministers whose names are even unknown for the public.

"Before the ministers were the people who were famous in this or
another way, now there are ministers whose names are not remembered,
the people don’t even know them", – mentioned the politician.

The speaker however didn’t answer the question of the journalists,
from where was the information about the possible staff changes,
instead he said that his "long time experience prompts him".

ARAZ ALIZADEH ON POSSIBLE APPOINTMENT OF TINA S. KAIDANOW: "WE URGENTLY NEED TO ACT"

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
12.08.2009 18:57 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ "The appointment of an American diplomat who long
worked in Kosovo, to the position of OSCE Minsk Group co-chair can not
promise anything good to us. Practically, that woman is the author of
separatist Kosovo’s independence, she cannot be trusted after that,"
Azeri political scientist Araz Alizadeh said commenting on the words
of Matthew Bryza, that he will soon be replaced by Tina Kaidanow at
the post of OSCE Minsk Group Co-chair form the United States.

" Karabakh conflict is the only conflict where positions of
the U.S. and Russia coincide, this is alarming. I fear very
much, whether the superpowers have prepared a crafty plan for
us. Karabakh’s independence is the defeat of Azerbaijan, and Turkey, as
well. Therefore, I think we need to act urgently until it the situation
becomes irreversible. The powerful Armenian lobby in the U.S. and
Russia will not rest until tears Karabakh off Azerbaijan. Therefore,
we must consolidate and to respond," Alizadeh said.

Speaking about the position of Turkey, Alizadeh particularly mentioned
that now the United States is not interested in Turkey at all. "It
was an important country for the United States during the Cold War,
but now it has lost its former significance, so no one would listen
to the opinion of Turkey. We will be given these 7 territories, but
the price would be too expensive, we have bid farewell to Karabakh. In
order to derail these plans, we must prepare for war," he said.

"Azerbaijan is neither Georgia nor Serbia, we are in a better position
than they are. Russia will not benefit from punishing us fearing to
destabilize the North Caucasus, and the West – because of its energy
projects," the Azeri political scientist said, 1news.az reports.

POLITICAL FLIER HEADED TO COURT
By Jessica Wehrman

Dayton Daily News
11:06 PM Sunday, August 9, 2009

WASHINGTON – A bloody 1915 conflict has sparked political warfare
in the 2nd congressional district, where U.S. Rep. Jean Schmidt
and Democrat David Krikorian are sparring about a flier Krikorian
distributed during the tail end of the 2008 political campaign.

The flier accused Schmidt, a member of the Turkish-American Relations
Caucus, of taking money from the Turkish government and Turkish
interests in exchange for her opposition to a congressional resolution
declaring the 1915 conflict between the two a genocide. Krikorian,
an Armenian-American whose own grandparents narrowly escaped the
bloodshed, supports the resolution. Earlier this year, Schmidt quietly
filed a complaint with the Ohio Elections Commission, arguing that
the flier was based on false statements.

A trial is set for Sept. 3. Schmidt’s camp must prove that Krikorian’s
statements were false and that he knew they were false.

Krikorian argues that two political action committees that Schmidt’s
campaign has received money from – the Turkish American Heritage
PAC and Turkish Coalition USA – receive money directly from Turkish
interests. The PACs describe themselves instead as PACs honoring
Turkish heritage.

Schmidt’s camp has hired a high-powered Washington, D.C. attorney,
Bruce Fein. Krikorian has his own: Mark Geragos, an Armenian-American
who has defended celebrities including Michael Jackson and Winona
Ryder.

For his part, Krikorian defends the fliers as a freedom of speech
issue, plain and simple. He doesn’t back away from his flier’s claim
that Schmidt accepted " blood money" to deny a genocide.

"There are no Turkish people who live in the second district," he
said. "Why is this woman doing this? She does this for the money."

But Bruce Pfaff, a spokesman for Schmidt said the issue isn’t one
of where one stands on Turkish-Armenian relations, but rather,
one of truth versus lies, and what part lies should play in a
campaign. Schmidt, he said, did not take money from Turkish interests
in exchange for her opposition to the resolution. "She obviously
believes atrocities were committed," he said, adding that she doesn’t
necessarily believe the bloodshed was planned by the government,
as international law demands it to be to be deemed a genocide.

Krikorian, who ran as an independent in 2008, said the issue is about
something bigger.

"This has to do with one of the absolute biggest issues we have in
our country – the flow of money from special interest organizations to
congressmen and senators in exchange for doing their bidding," he said.

Gem in the Rough: The Appreciation of Armenian Art

e-rough-the-appreciation-of-armenian-art/
By Contributor on Aug 7th, 2009

BY JEAN MURACHANIAN

For the last decade or so, the number of art galleries in Southern
California has been steadily growing. A notable addition to the group
is Stephanie’s Fine Art Gallery, a bold and innovative gallery
specializing in Armenian art. Beyond its unique emphasis on Armenian
art, Stephanie’s is particularly distinctive because of the vision of
its founder and owner, Linda Stepanyan.

Stepanyan opened the gallery ten years ago, because she wanted to
bring her appreciation of Armenian art to a wider audience.
Stepanyan’s goal is to not only assist Armenian customers in their
purchases of Armenian art, but perhaps more importantly to bring the
world of Armenian art to the attention of non-Armenians. As Stepanyan
herself says, `when other nations appreciate Armenian art it makes me
proud of what I am doing…. It makes me happy and gives me more
motivation.’

Stepanyan’s keen eye and personal preference has led her to focus the
gallery’s collection on modern and contemporary art created by artists
of Armenian descent, sourced from an extensive network of dealers
located throughout Europe. In terms of the modern period (or what
Stepanyan refers to as the `classical’ period of Armenian art), the
gallery includes work by Armenian artists working in Europe or
Istanbul from the mid-nineteenth century to the mid-twentieth century.

Artists in this category include such well-known names as Jean Carzou,
Jean Jansem, Hovsep Pushman, and Edgar Chahine. Other artists
represented in the gallery’s collection include Léon Tutundjian,
Arsène Chabanian, Ohannès Alhazian, and Sarkis Diranian.
Contemporary artists represented include those of Armenian descent
living in the United States – primarily Los Angeles, with many hailing
originally from Armenia, the Soviet Union or the Middle East – or
Europe, including such contemporary artists as Koko, Emil Kazaz,
Galust Grigoryan, and Sasho.

This dual focus on contemporary and more modern/`classical’ art by
artists of Armenian descent helps the gallery more easily bridge the
gap between the two periods. For instance, when customers come in
looking for work produced by better-known artists from the modern
period, such as Carzou and Jansem, Stepanyan takes the opportunity to
educate them about the work being produced by contemporary Armenian
artists, as well as perhaps lesser-known artists of the modern period.
Stepanyan argues that there are many contemporary (and modern)
Armenian artists who, though perhaps not well-known, have nonetheless
produced brilliant works that, like gems waiting to be discovered,
deserve to be appreciated and collected. She points to the example of
Vincent van Gogh, who was unknown during his lifetime but, as we are
all undoubtedly aware, now commands record prices affordable to none
but the wealthy art collector or well-endowed museum.

Stephanie’s customer base is comprised of both Armenians and
non-Armenians. Many of the non-Armenian clients are in the movie
industry in Los Angeles and are, ironically, generally well-informed
about art and appreciate the work of modern artists Chahine, Pushman,
and Carzou. Stepanyan was thrilled recently to offer one of her
customers a refrigerator panel painted by Carzou in 1958 that was
originally part of a charity fundraising exhibition in Paris organized
by the Galerie Carpentier. The exhibition, titled `The Nobility of
the Everyday Object,’ comprised ten refrigerators, each painted by
different well-known French artists, including Salvador Dali, Jean
Cocteau, Bernard Buffet, Georges Mathieu, and Léonor Fini. The
exhibition was described by Cocteau as `a victory over the negative
style of emptiness.’ By way of example, Stepanyan suggests that a
panel from this series painted by Carzou would normally sell for
several thousand dollars, while one created by Buffet could cost as
much as $200,000.

The existence of galleries such as Stephanie’s can clearly have a
meaningful impact on the recognition of art created by artists of
Armenian descent. They educate the general public about Armenian art
and culture and provide a much-needed forum for up-and-coming
contemporary artists. In expanding the awareness of Armenian art to a
wider audience, such galleries serve to bolster its value within the
broader art community.

Stepanyan’s observations suggest that such value goes beyond its price
or the accessibility it affords or denies to potential patrons. Not
surprisingly, lesser-known pieces are relatively more affordable,
while that affordability nonetheless seldom makes them more attractive
to purchasers. There is some evidence, however, that non-Armenian
patrons are also more open to new or lesser-known artists, including
those of Greek and Russian decent, whose art and culture have
traditionally received more active local support.

There is perhaps no better way to improve on this trend than by
actively supporting the production – and enjoyment – of Armenian art.
After all, there is nothing like seeing and appreciating the real
thing, by spending time in one of the numerous galleries and venues
that feature the works of artists of Armenian descent, both in and
outside of Southern California.

All Rights Reserved: Critics’ Forum, 2009. Exclusive to the Armenian
Reporter.

Jean Murachanian holds a Ph.D. in Art History from UCLA.

You can reach her or any of the other contributors to Critics’ Forum
at [email protected]. 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.