| I was born in one of forest-covered northern regions of Armenia, in the village of “Darpas”. Darpas in Armenian means gate. Darpas did not resemble a village, it reminded more of an industrial center. A good number of poisonous chemical plants of the Soviet Union were built there. Overtime, some of the abandoned factory sites were turned into grazing grounds. There, nature and industry coexisted in unusual, mutually destructive relation. The conflict became more apparent after the Spitak earthquake (December 1988) and during post-Soviet years, when the regime, which ignored nature, collapsed and with it destroyed the industry as well as the nature. Social and economic turmoil of following years had major effect on my artistic vision. Tendency for avoiding natural and social disasters and drive for subsistence became more explicit in my art when in 1994 together with a group of artists we created the “Act Group”. We were trying to make art serve the process of solving burning social problems. In “Art Demonstration” (1995), “Beautiful Progress” (1996), and other performances and “actions” we were scorning bureaucratic and totalitarian postures, which opted to disregard the difference between wisdom and insanity. However, since 1997, utilization of art as clean means of propaganda, for me seized to be really effective and convincing. “Crisis” (1999), “Civic Commotion” (2000), exhibitions I organized at the Armenian Center for Contemporary Experimental Art (“NPAK” in Armenian acronym), in my opinion were more fitting to the role of the artist, and contemporary vision of art. During creative process I search for images, which by means of direct impact would awaken deep and long forgotten fantasies, and would reinstate those horrifying feelings. The fear emanating from transformation of social systems, which is apparent in post-Soviet countries, in my deepest conviction is related with horrors of disintegration. Post Cold-War man is anxiously searching for boundaries-points of reference and sense of belonging. These are precisely the causes of egoism, nationalism and chauvinism, which I try to address in my art. |