ManBan Visual Culture Archive

08/03/2025

Any day is a good day to celebrate women, their role in society and achievements, but March 8 reminds us of the long struggle for female emancipation, which continues worldwide. Hence, a key focus of ManBan Archive’s collection is the work of Armenian and international women artists.
Among them, Gohar Fermanyan (1899-1958) is crucial as one of the first Soviet-Armenian women to receive academic training. Born in Tiflis, she studied at VKHUTEIN in Leningrad under Kuzma Petrov-Vodkin before moving to Yerevan in 1927. She became active in the local art scene, teaching at the Technical College, exhibiting, and working on public projects. Trained as a monumentalist, she drafted large-scale frescoes, but none were realized. Instead, she developed a distinct painting style influenced by primitivism and various strands of expressionism. Her early work aligned with the avant-garde trends, aiming to express the radical transformations of the socialist reality and often depicted the proletariat, Armenia’s industrialization, and modern women.
However, with the onset of Stalinist repressions in the 1930s, Fermanyan abandoned this experimental trajectory to avoid persecution, adopting a more conservative style in line with socialist realism. Yet, avant-garde concepts lingered in her later work, as seen in Woman in Red Blouse from ManBan’s collection. Likely painted in the early 1940s, the portrait’s dramatic asceticism with its minimalist palette of red, white and blue characterises Fermanyan’s interest in reducing the visual subject to distinct color fields, while drawing attention to the painterly surface with bold brushstrokes and blank canvas areas.. The psychological depth of the young woman’s portrayal highlights her intellectual and professional presence, resisting objectification and allegory, which were so prevalent in mid-20th-century depictions of women in Armenian and global art.


28/12/2024

New Acquisition #12

Last year we acquired some twenty works by Armenian and Soviet artists of the 1960s-80s from a private collection. Among the works by known artists, there were also some interesting pieces without any identifying marks. This small, oil on paper drawing of a bull was one them. Executed in a breathlessly free, nervy manner, the piece has tremendous expressive power despite the simplicity of the motif and small scale. The melancholy mood and the starkness of the anxious black line convey a sense of existential dread, typical of the works by late 1970s-1980s avant-garde Armenian artists. Alas, the drawing was unsigned and there were absolutely no factual clues as to the identity of the artist. Despite this, the style and manner of the drawing was strongly reminiscent of Vartan Tovmasyan (1948-2012), a founding figure of Armenian contemporary art in the 1970s – one of the most talented painters and sculptors to emerge in Armenia in the second half of the 20th century. But stylistic attributions can only be conditional and there was little hope that we’d ever find precise evidence of the drawing’s authorship.

Some days ago, we were researching an unrelated topic in the literary journal Garun. While leafing through the August 1981 issue of the magazine, we came upon a short story called ‘The Lost’ by Charles Roberts, which featured an illustration that looked very familiar. Upon direct comparison we realised, to our great surprise, that the illustration was an exact match with the Bull from our collection! Tovmasyan was one of the most active collaborators of Garun during the 1980s and executed dozens of drawings for short stories and poems by many of his greatest literary contemporariers. Now that we know what the drawing was intended for - a story about a bull who gets lost in the wilderness – the significance of its bleak mood becomes clear.

As this story shows, artworks always leave a trace, they have a real biography. Researching that biography is a long, often frustrating process that rewards in the end, because one just never know what new meanings their history will reveal.

01/10/2024

We are all proud of Armenia’s rich cultural heritage and enjoy it almost on a daily level, never really stopping to appreciate how much it helps us to define our core values and foundations of identity. The task of keeping these vestiges of the past is gargantuan and ever-increasing, requiring enormous financial and human resources even for basic upkeep. Which is why it is more important than ever (especially in times of global strife) to do everything we can to protect and maintain our collective heritage. And at least not to cause further damage.

This 1950s photograph show the famous Khor Virap monastery before its complete reconstruction in the 1970s after centuries of neglect and ruin.

Photographer unknown. ManBan Visual Archive collection.

21/07/2024

This 20th of July marked the 96th anniversary of the great Armenian painter (1928-1975). Known for his intensely saturated and mytho-poetic figural compositions and landscapes representing his homeland and traditional culture, Minas was also a brilliant draughtsman who left scores of drawings which are sometimes even more experimental and daring than his paintings. The artist's ability to generate expressive power and emotional insight with just a few gestural strokes, allowed him to imbue even the smallest sheet of paper with a sense of epic drama.

That dramaticism is in full evidence in the ex-libris from ManBan Archive's collection, which Avetisyan produced in the early 1970s for a friend named Laura. It is one of the few known examples of an ex-libris by Avetisyan – a miniature format that the artist was not especially interested. Despite this, Avetisyan managed to create a vivid composition of a woman experiencing spiritual exaltation as she immerses herself in the reading of the Bible (as is clearly indicated by the medieval book-stand and the crucifixion in the background).

For a brief period, the ex-libris became a widely-popular genre of graphic art in the late 1960s in Armenia and Avetisyan's father-in-law, illustrator Ashot Mamajanyan was known as a master of the medium. In its inimatable expressionistic and painterly style, Laura's ex-libris, however, stands out from the more illustrative and decorative approaches common at the time.

15/07/2024

ANATOMY OF A PROTEST: 
The Karabagh Movement in Avetik Hovhannisyan’s 1988 Photographs

The work of the Armenian photographer Avetik Hovhannisyan (1960–1988) is unknown to the public. Having taken up the camera in the late 1970s as a hobby, Hovhannisyan’s career was cut short when he was cruelly murdered in unresolved circumstances at 28 years of age. Opened in the frameworks of on May 31 and drawn from the collection of ManBan Visual Culture Archive, the exhibition Anatomy of a Protest includes a selection of Hovhannisyan’s unpublished negative archive, which presents a raw perspective on the 1988 Karabagh Movement.
Between 1987 and 1988, Hovhannisyan was on the streets of Yerevan documenting the rising wave of anti-government protests by the Karabagh Liberation Movement. The resulting images lacked technical or aesthetic finesse but had an electrifying urgency that is still palpable. The photographer aimed to witness and record events before they crystallised into historical facts, giving us a precious glimpse of the protests in their unfiltered form.
But how do we perceive this record today, when we’re aware of its tragic future after the 2020 war and the eventual loss of Artsakh? As frozen fragments of a disappeared reality, these photographs do not contain answers, messages, or even memories that may ‘explain’ the past. They come to us instead as a site of mourning for the loss of historical narratives. But in our act of looking, the past reappears in the here and now as a spectral trace, forcing us to reflect on and make sense of it as ‘History’. Thus, in analysing these photographs, we inevitably turn them into a sort of map that ties us to points in time, yet always leads back to ourselves with a promise of a revelation, a flash of ‘truth’.
What this map divulges, among many things, is an ‘anatomy’ of the 1988 protests with its patterns, pulses, and movements. In this genealogical link with the past, the viewer sees a reflection of the anatomies of present-day desires, movements, and dreams. It is a moment of recognition that reveals our current experiences as a journey and a cycle, as History.

Vigen Galstyan

05/07/2024

EVN Report's art digest for July 6-20! Find out what exciting events there are in town during the next two weeks.

The cultural high point of the year is definitely peaking in the next couple of weeks with the opening of the 21st Golden Apricot International Film Festival with its usual roster of must-see films and... uhum... controversial guests. Finding the gems, or maybe the guilty pleasures in this whirlwind...

25/06/2024

Երևանում միշտ այնքան տարբեր մշակութային միջոցառումներ են միաժամանակ ու կարճաժամկետ կազմակերպվում, որ չես հասցնում կարգին պլանավորել և մասնակցել ընթացիկ իրադարձություններին, որոնցից շատերը ֆեյսբուքից դուրս նույնիսկ չեն գովազդվում ու մնում են անտեսված։ Դրսից եկած ծանոթներս անընդհատ հարցնում են թե քաղաքում ինչ կա տեսնելու ու երկար ժամանակ ուզում էի մշակութային միջոցառումների ուղեցույցի նման մի բան լիներ որ այդ հարցին ամփոփ պատասխան տա, որ անընդհատ ցանկեր չկազմեմ։ Հետո որոշեցի ինքս անել EVN Report-ի համար։ Այսուհետ, երկու շաբաթը մեկ Artineary դայջեսթով կկարողանաք տեղեկանալ թե քաղաքում ինչ հետաքրքիր միջոցառումներ կան տեսողական արվեստի հետ կապված։ Հուսամ օգտակար կլինի։ Ու եթե պատրաստվում եք ցուցահանդես, կինոդիտում կամ դասախոսություն կազմակերպել, ապա անպայման գրեք՝ սիրով կտեղադրենք։ Շնորհակալ եմ Շահբազյան Արմինե–ին հրաշալի ձևավորման համար։

Yerevan's social calendar is ramping up with a torrent of events that will immerse you in all sorts of art if you, well... let it. To help you navigate the vibrant art scene, we're putting together a short bi-weekly digest of the best that the capital has on offer for the art-going public and visito...

30/05/2024

2023 թվականին Արցախի էթնիկ զտումներից հետո հանրային դաշտում մշակութային գործնեություն ծավալելը չափազանց ծանր ու բարդ խնդիր է։ Սա հայոց պատմության հերթական ողբերգական շրջադարձն է որը մեզ ստիպեց որոշ ժամանակով կանգ առնել ու վերանայել մեր կազմակերպության դիրքորոշումներն ու նպատակները։ Կորուստների այս շղթան, այնուամենայնիվ, պետք է հանդիսանա նոր ջանքերի, նոր մոտեցումների ու գաղափարների ազդակ ու մեկնակետ։

Ստեղծված իրավիճակը հերթական անգամ ապացուցում է հավաքական հիշողության պահպանման և դրա հետ քննադատական հարաբերությունների սրված անհրաժեշտությունը՝ իբրև ապագային միտված հարացույցների հիմնային պայման։ Մյուս կողմից՝ Արցախի թանգարանների, հուշարձանների և արխիվների կորստի ու պատմական պատումների ծայրահեղ քաղաքականացման ֆոնին ակնբախ է դառնում հայկական մշակութային ժառանգության վտանգվածության աստիճանը։ Սույն պայմաններում էլ ավելի կարևոր է դառնում անկախ, ոչ պետական կառույցների գործնեությունը որպես Հայաստանի մշակութային քաղաքականությանը սատարող ու ընդլայնող գործիք և նոր մշակութային պատումներ ստեղծող միջոց։

Ուստի պատահական չէ, որ 2024 թվականի մեր ծրագիրը մեկնարկում ենք լուսանկարիչ Ավետիք Հովհաննիսյանի (1960-1988) 1988 թվականի Ղարաբաղյան Շարժումը վավերագրող լուսանկարների ցուցադրությունից։ «Պայքարի անատոմիա» ցուցահանդեսը իրագործվել է EVN Report–ի հետ համատեղ, փառատոնի շրջանակներում, որը տեղի կունենա մայիսի 30-ից մինչև հունիսի 1-ը։ «ՄանԲան» արխիվում պահվող Ավետիք Հովհաննիսյանի սևապատակների հավաքածուն հնարավորություն է ստեղծում նորովի առերեսվելու 88-ի շարժման մթնոլորտին, ընթացքին, մասնակիցներին ու գործող անձանց և վերաիմաստավորելու այդ առանցքային պատմական իրադարձության բնույթն ու նշանակությունը մերօրյա զարգացումների դիտակետից։

Հատուկ շնորհակալություն ենք հայտնում արխիվի թվայնացմանն ու ցուցահանդեսի կազմակերպմանը մասնակցած բոլոր կամավորներին, առանց ում այս նախագիծը չէր իրականանա։

Ցուցահանդեսը բացումը՝ ամսի 30-ին, ժամը 19.00-ից։ Հասցե՝ Հենրիկ Իգիթյանի անվ. Գեղագիտական կենտրոն (1-ին հարկ), Աբովյան 13։

Տարվա երկրորդ կեսին լույս կտեսնի սույն ցուցահանդեսի վրա հիմնված ֆոտոգիրքը։

18/09/2023

New Acquisition #11

Post-war modernist aesthetics did not have an easy time getting into the conservative Soviet-Armenian households and the still-developing realm of industrial design. Establishing ties with ‘national’ visual traditions was a more vital objective, which many artists and consumers sought through the recycling of medieval pictorial motifs, shapes, patterns and even specific colour arrangements.

Nevertheless, there was no denying the forceful push for rational and streamlined way of life that took over Soviet society after Stalin’s death. During the 1960s, the Armenian light industries began producing objects and consumer goods that were trying to address this need for ‘optimisation’ and ‘fresher’ aesthetics. This uneasy transformation is particularly explicit in a series of items produced by Yerevan Faience Factory, such as this ascetic faience liquor set, acquired by ManBan Archive last month. Earlier in the decade, the factory had come under fire for churning out garish and poorly-designed wares that pandered to the lowest common denominator with their ornamental and schmaltzy decorations that seemed to belong to another era completely. Thanks to the involvement of younger ceramic artists such as Hmayak Bdeyan, the Faience Factory attempted to imbue its production with more contemporary aesthetic approaches that rejected illustrative decoration and ornamental forms. With its minimalist forms, dominance of clean lines and pure contrasts, this liquor set referenced the stylistic principles of the European Bauhaus and early avant-garde designers. The small dimensions of the decanter and glasses also spoke about more ‘refined’ forms of dining and table setting, which in the instance of Armenian customs tended to be dominated by much more voluminous objects.

The combination of unobtrusive simplicity and minimalist refinement were, however, quite alien to the sensibilities of the local consumers, who preferred more ‘loud’ designs that could speak for social status and carry symbolic connotations. As a result, the modernist approach did not have a significant impact on local industrial design and items like this one remained in production for a short time only and were released in extremely limited numbers. The liquor set, nevertheless, testifies to diverse experimental phases of Armenian 20th century design and its attempts to respond to the paradigmatic transformations of global, post-war visual culture.

06/09/2023

New Acquisition #10

Of all the different historical branches of Armenian art, the artistic heritage of Ottoman-Armenian culture is still one of the least explored. There are harsh factual reasons for this, most of which stem from the consequences of the 1915 Armenian Genocide that effectively put an end to a rich and flourishing cultural tradition. Most ethnically-Armenian art practitioners of the Ottoman Empire were based in major cities like Istanbul and Izmir and were able to evade the waves of deportations and mass murders by emigrating the country. A handful of them, however, remained in Istanbul and continued to create in the modern republic Turkey.

One of those figures was the painter Onnik Der-Azarian (1883-1935). Born in Izmit, Azarian moved to Istanbul in 1914 after apprenticing at his father’s book-binding workshop. He continued working in Armenian printing houses while developing a reputation as a painter of seascapes and romantic views of the Bosporus. A self-taught artist who was clearly influenced by Hovhannes Aivazovsky, Azarian mastered both oil and pastel techniques, the latter of which he used to great effect in his smoky landscapes of Istanbul’s environs. Often enveloped in dusk or moonlight, these impressionistic scenes of harbours, forests and historical sites are steeped in nostalgia for a disappearing, quasi-pastoral way of life. Perhaps this explains the immense popularity of Azarian’s work, which was sold at different storefronts in Istanbul’s central district and was greatly favoured by European and American tourists. T

hough old-fashioned in their academic style, Azarian’s monochrome and dark views were a radical departure from the overtly colorful depictions of Istanbul. This melancholic aesthetic became something of a trend and influenced other popular Ottoman-Armenian artists of the period, such as Azarian's friend, Zareh Moskofian. Last month ManBan archive acquired an excellent example of Azarian’s work, which features a scene of a shepherd herding his flock on the outskirts of Istanbul.

It appears to be the only example of this artist’s work held in Armenia.