Category: 2021

LOS ANGELES—The Promise Armenian Institute announced that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Armenian Film Foundation to collaborate on a range of projects that will support Armenian film and photography at the University of California, Los Angeles. 

On November 18, the Promise Armenian Institute will host “Aftermath: the Armenian Earthquake of 1988,” the first online exhibit of the Armenian Image Archive, which will celebrate the work of Asadour Guzelian. Guzelian is a photographer based in the United Kingdom who went to Armenia shortly after the earthquake in 1988. This Zoom event will feature some of his photographs, which were featured in mainstream newspapers at the time.

The webinar, which is the inaugural event of this new collaboration, is co-sponsored by the UCLA Richard Hovannisian Endowed Chair in Modern Armenian History, the UCLA Library, the National Association for Armenian Studies and Research, and the Ararat-Eskijian Museum. 

The Armenian Image Archive is the first of the new collaborations between PAI and AFF. This new archive has three goals — preservation, research and exhibition of Armenian photographers and photography related to Armenian subject-matter. The AIA will identify photography collections around the world, from the mid-19th century up to contemporary collections. It will provide both a repository and an ongoing platform for discourse and study about Armenian photographers. 

The Armenian Film Foundation was founded by J. Michael Hagopian, Ph.D., who was instrumental, along with NAASR, in creating the first chair of Armenian Studies at UCLA. Hagopian was a lecturer at UCLA before becoming a documentary filmmaker.  With his legacy in mind, the Armenian Film Foundation will support projects at UCLA that tie film and photography to a deeper understanding of Armenian history, culture, and the arts.

• Armenian Earthquake (Photo by Asadour Guzelian, 1989, Spitak, Armenia)
• Western tourists at the Dome of the Rock, Jerusalem, by Garabed Krikorian, Krikorian Studio, ca 1895, Malikian Collection

Joseph Malikian, Ph.D., an expert on early Armenian photography, is working closely with the Armenian Image Archive. Malikian is the author of “The Armenians in the Ottoman Empire: an Anthology and a Photo History,” and an upcoming publication, “The Krikorians on Jaffa Road.” 

As part of the “Malikian Collection,” Malikian has gathered vintage images and the history of many Armenian photographic studios, dating from the 1860s, including Abdullah Freres, Sebah, Sebah & Joaillier, Tarkulyan (Atelier Phebus), Iranian, Gulmez Freres, Lekegian, Krikorian, Sarrafian, Alban, Van Leo, Armand, De Mirjian, Karsh and many others. His collection contains original images from the renowned Armenian photographic studios in Armenia, Tiflis, Baku, and other parts of what was once the Russian Empire.  

“The Armenian Image Archive will also identify previously unknown collections from the Armenian Genocide period,” said Carla Garapedian, Ph.D., of the Armenian Film Foundation. “Over a hundred years have passed, but there are still photos that haven’t seen the light of day.” 

A rare photo from the Genocide period, Armenian Film Foundation

“The UCLA Promise Armenian Institute is very much looking forward to this new partnership with the Armenian Film Foundation. The Armenian Image Archive, as well as all future projects, will enrich the scholarly inquiry of Armenian photography and film at UCLA and make accessible to the public and the academic community footage and collections tantamount to a national treasure,” said Professor Ann Karagozian, the inaugural director of the Promise Armenian Institute. “I also want to acknowledge the UCLA Library and the UCLA Film & Television Archive for their important future role in our AFF partnership. Both organizations are international leaders in preserving and providing access to cultural heritage, and their world-class expertise will amplify the Armenian Image Archive’s work advancing our shared goals.”

The “Aftermath: the Armenian Earthquake of 1988” webinar will take place on Thursday, November 18 at 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time. Individuals interested in participating may register online. To learn more about the Promise Armenian Institute, please visit the PAI website and to learn more about the Armenian Film Foundation, please visit their website.

Asadour Guzelian was born in the United Kingdom and founded what became the Guzelian agency in 1986, after cutting his teeth for eight years with Barry Wilkinson in Bradford. He has supplied news and feature photographs to Britain’s national newspapers. Exhibitions include one-man shows at the National Museum of Photography and the Cornerhouse, Manchester. He has twice won the prestigious Yorkshire TV Photographer of the Year. Guzelian was only three years into his career when he traveled to Armenia to cover the catastrophic earthquake in 1988.

Joseph Malikian, Ph.D., is the author of “The Armenians in the Ottoman Empire: An Anthology and a Photo History” and an expert on early Armenian photography. The Malikian Collection was developed in the context of the “Middle East and Armenian Photographic Project” which has been devoted to the study of the Armenian studios in the Ottoman and Russian Empires, the Middle East, Bulgaria and other countries in Europe. Throughout this period in history (1850s to 1960s), Armenian photographers dominated the industry in the cultural and commercial capitals of Europe and Asia. The primary objective of the Malikian Collection has been to identify and gather the history of these studios and to continue the collection of original images representing the work of these photographic establishments. The Armenian Image Archive will support Joseph Malikian’s seminal work.

Carla Garapedian, Ph.D., is a filmmaker and member of The Armenian Film Foundation, which has forged a new partnership with the Promise Armenian Institute – to support the study of Armenian film and filmmakers, as well as to create the Armenian Image Archive, a repository and platform for the study of Armenian photography – from early to contemporary photographers.

BY ARAM ARKUN

BURBANK, Calif. – There are key individuals at any epoch and any place whose decisive actions shape their environment. George Kevork Mandossian is one such individual. Mandossian passed away on October 17, having led a full and long life. A leader of the Tekeyan Cultural Association of the United States and Canada and the Armenian Democratic Liberal Party, he also played an important role in the Armenian Church and the Armenian General Benevolent Union. He was a founder and guiding spirit of the TCA Arshag Dickranian Armenian School and a member of the founding council of the Montebello Armenian Martyrs Memorial Monument.

Youth
Mandossian was born in Jerusalem on February 24, 1934 to Antranig and Haiganoush Mandossian. During the first Arab-Israeli war, his family was forced to move from the new sector of Jerusalem to the Armenian Quarter of the old city. He graduated the Holy Translators Armenian elementary school in 1948 and the Catholic College des Freres afterwards. An athletic youth, he joined the Armenian Young Men’s Society (Hoyetchmen) to participate in scouting and sports, as well as cultural and social activities.

Mandossian found his first job in 1952 in nearby Amman, Jordan, as a draftsman for the US Foreign Aid Program (Point IV), and was able to find the time to simultaneously teach calligraphy at the Hetoumian Elementary School of that city. It was in Amman that Mandossian joined the Armenian Democratic Liberal Party, and joined a basketball group that turned into the Armenian National Atheletic Union (Azkayin Marzagan Mioutioun) in 1955. As part of the Jordanian National Basketball Team, which had five Armenian out of eleven members, Mandossian participated in the first Pan-Arab Olympic Games in Alexandria, Egypt. His team won the third-place bronze medal.

In 1955, he began his studies of engineering at the American University of Beirut. In 1959 he and his parents were accepted as refugees from Palestine to the United States.

Life in America
Mandossian was clearly a joiner and a doer. As soon as he was settled in Los Angeles, he joined the choir of St. James Armenian Church, and the local chapters of the ADL and the Armenian Church Youth Organization of America.

Bishop Torkom Manoogian, who knew Mandossian in Jerusalem, was elected as Primate of the Western Diocese in 1962 and soon chose Mandossian along with five other young men to be trained as deacons.

Mandossian studied at the University of California, Los Angeles, at night, while working during the day as a microfilm processor, and in 1964 graduated with a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering (structural). He earned a master’s in the same field from the University of Southern California two years later and soon became quite successful in this professional arena.

In 1965, when half a century had passed after the start of the Armenian Genocide without any real justice or even international recognition, Armenians around the world saw the need for action. Mandossian did his part by joining with other Armenian professionals to form an Armenian Monument Council which led to the erection of the Armenian Martyrs Memorial Monument in Montebello, California. When Catholicos of All Armenians Vasken I came to visit it and donate two khachkars in 1968, Mandossian, then on the Diocesan Council in Los Angeles, volunteered to be the latter’s chauffeur and companion.

The ADL grew stronger in Los Angeles when its organ, the newspaper Nor Or, was moved there from Fresno, and a building was bought on Pico Boulevard. The Armenian Youth Cultural Association was established, which was renamed a few years later as the Tekeyan Cultural Association’s Los Angeles chapter. This chapter held major events at the Wilshire Ebell Theater, such as bringing the famed singer Lucine Zakarian to perform, or organizing exhibits.

The Armenian community of Los Angeles was growing rapidly in the 1970s and 1980s through new immigration from the Middle East and Soviet Armenia. During this period, Mandossian exhibited leadership in various local and national ADL, TCA and AGBU bodies.

He was vice president of the TCA Central Board of Trustees for many years. One of the major initiatives he spearheaded was the creation of the TCA Arshag Dickranian Armenian School in Hollywood. He continued to be involved as head of its board of trustees for several decades and presided over its expansion into a high school with a major campus.
As an indication of the intensity of his dedication to the school, he wrote in his reminiscences, “Since its establishment, Arshag Dickranian School has become my prime interest after my family.”
Mandossian was also a driving force behind the creation of the TCA Beshgeturian Center in Altadena, California, helping both secure the necessary funds from the main benefactors, Vahan and Nartoui Beshgeturian, and serving for over thirty years on its board of trustees.

Mandossian has received many honors, including the St. Sahag – St. Mesrob Medal of Honor from Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II in 2007. Mandossian was honored by the Tekeyan Cultural Association at the Beshgeturian Center in 2018. At that event, Edmond Y. Azadian, president of the TCA Central Board, who served for many years on that board with Mandossian, and knew him as a youth in Beirut, observed that Mandossian was a man of few words, but his work spoke volumes about him and his dedication to the community.

Mandossian’s work contributed to the expansion of not only the organizations that he served, but the broader Armenian community of Los Angeles, and ultimately, the flourishing of Armenian culture and identity in the United States and the pursuit of historical justice for the Armenian people.

Funeral arrangements will be announced soon.

ARF Western U.S. Central Committee welcomes Shanazarian

Rev. Hendrik Shanazarian assumed the post of Interim Minister to the Armenian Evangelical Union of North America on October 1. He was unanimously confirmed by vote of the AEUNA Board of Directors in June 2021, and will be officially presented as the candidate to the full AEUNA General Assembly for approval as Minister to the Union during the next biennial meeting of the General Assembly in June 2022.

The Armenian Revolutionary Federation Western U.S. Central Committee had an opportunity to meet and welcome Rev. Shahnazarian when he accompanied Rev. Berdj Djambazian to the party’s headquarters in Glendale for a meeting with the body.

During the meeting, the sides discussed issues of concern to the community, the important role the Armenian Evangelical Union North America plays in the advancement of our national aspirations, the current crisis in Lebanon and the Middle impacting the Armenian communities there, as well as the challenges facing Armenia and Artsakh after the devastating 44-Day War.

Welcoming reverends Djambazian and Shanazarian were ARF Western U.S. Central Committee chairperson Dr. Carmen Ohanian along with CC member Vahan Bzdigan and Avedik Izmirlian, who serves as Central Committee’s representative to community organizations.

From l to r: ARF Western U.S. Central Committee’s Vahan Bzdigian, Dr. Carmen Ohanian, reverends Berdj Djambazian, Hendrik Shanazarian and Avedik Izmirlian

“We look forward to working with Rev. Shanazarian and strengthening our already positive working relations with the Armenian Evangelical Church of North America,” said ARF Central Committee chair Dr. Ohanian. “Our community has been fortunate to have a leader like Rev. Djambazian at the helm of the AEUNA for the past several years. He has worked tirelessly to advance the Armenian Cause and bring unity and cooperation to our community efforts.”

Born in Tehran, Rev. Shanazarian was ordained as a minister of Word and Sacrament in November 2000 in the Evangelical (Presbyterian) Church of Iran. He holds a B.A. in Clinical Psychology from the Allameh Tabatabaie University in Tehran, Iran, and M.Div. from the Near East School of Theology in Beirut, Lebanon. Rev. Shanazarian is married to Dr. Mariet Mikaelian, and they have two children, Anna and Tadeh.

In 1981, he started his ministry in the Armenian Evangelical Church in Tehran as a youth leader, and has served in different capacities since then. Before coming to the U.S. in 2007, he served on the leadership of the Synod of the Evangelical (Presbyterian) Church in Iran, and taught Old Testament, Systematic Theology, and Christian Counseling and Worship at the Synod’s Bible School.

Rev. Shanazarian was elected Moderator of the AEUNA at the General Assembly 2020 meeting held virtually, and was instrumental in assisting with ecclesiastical and community projects. He was most recently Associate Pastor at United Armenian Congregational Church, Los Angeles.

Artak Beglaryan, the State Minister of the Republic of Artsakh, will be the featured speaker at a public forum hosted by the Pan-Armenian Council of the Western United States, on October 25 at 7 p.m. to be held at the Armenian Society of Los Angeles (Iranahye) Center in the heart of downtown Glendale, California. Beglaryan has been invited to the United States by the Armenian Missionary Association of America to give a keynote address during the AMAA’s 102nd Annual Meeting Banquet.

Beglaryan, who from 2018 to 2020, served as the Human Rights Ombudsman of Artsakh, will be in Glendale as part of a tour of multiple North American cities. In his presentation at the Armenian Society of Los Angeles, it is anticipated that Beglaryan will provide the audience with an insightful discussion about the current state of affairs in the Republic of Artsakh in the context of the devastating 44 day war of 2020. He will further offer a glimpse into the Artsakh government’s plans at future redevelopment and economic growth.

In his position as Human Rights Ombudsman, Beglaryan was the powerful representative voice of his fellow Artsakh citizens as he covered the 2020 war with daily public updates directly from the combat zone. He exhorted millions around the world to “Don’t Be Blind,” to the horrors and destruction that befell the Armenians of Artsakh.

In his official capacity, Beglaryan was instrumental in the preparation reports on war crimes perpetrated by Azerbaijan against the Artsakh people. Before the war, Minister Beglaryan conducted research on the constitutional rights and freedoms of the people of Artsakh, and made reform proposals to the government in the areas of prison practices, torture prevention, children’s rights, rights of persons with disabilities, and orphan care.

A highly-experienced statesman, Beglaryan has held several posts in Artsakh, including deputy Human Rights Ombudsman, Press Secretary of the Prime Minister, and Chief-of Staff of the President. With his background in civil society, he has headed and participated in non-governmental organizations and initiatives, focusing on youth education and raising awareness of human rights. He has also lectured at Artsakh State University in the field of political science.

Mr. Beglaryan lost his eyesight as a child in 1995, when a landmine he found in his family’s yard exploded. His father had died in battle during the first Artsakh War of Liberation just two years earlier. Mr. Beglaryan was sent to study in Yerevan at a school for the visually impaired from 1995-2006. Coming home during summer breaks, he attended the AMAA Camp in Stepanakert and credits his Christian education there as the bedrock of his commitment to public service. He graduated from Yerevan State University in 2010, subsequently studied business management in Thessaloniki, Greece as part of a student exchange program, and took part in international programs and research fellowships in the Czech Republic and Switzerland. He went on to graduate studies at University College London in politics, security, and integration; and completed a public policy and administration program in the U.S. at Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University near Boston, Mass.

Chairwoman of the Pan-Armenian Council of the Western United States, Lena Bozoyan, stated: “We are so honored and fortunate to be able to host this event where our very distinguished guest, Mr. Artak Beglaryan, will be addressing the concerns and questions of our community members in regard to the plight of their brothers and sisters in the Republic of Artsakh. We welcome all those who will be able to attend.”

Admission to the public forum is free. Precautions to safeguard the public against the spread of the Coronavirus will be in place during the event. The Armenian Society of Los Angeles (Iranahye) Center is located at 117 S. Louise St., Glendale, CA 91205.

The Pan-Armenian Council of the Western United States of America was founded in Burbank, California in 2019 and comprises 25 of the largest religious, political, cultural and professional organizations of the Armenian community. Through the Council, these entities strive to fulfill the organization’s mission statement, which is to implement and realize projects of pan-community nature; to encourage and assist projects which advance the collective interests and the rights of Armenian communities across the Western United States; to undertake steps to resist actions and efforts which are contrary to the collective interests and rights of Armenians; to gather and apply the Armenian community’s resources for the benefit of the Community’s interests, as well as the welfare of the Republics of Armenia and Artsakh; to always be mindful of the collective health and protection of the Armenian community.