Armenian Library & Museum of America, Inc.
65 Main Street
Watertown, MA 02472
Phone: 617-926-2562 ext. 3
Fax: 617-926-0175
Contact Person: Mariam Stepanyan
Website:

November 13, 2006

Press Release: For Immediate Release

THE WORD OF GOD: Armenian Illuminations

Featuring Herra Karagozyan’s Collection

In celebration of the 1600th anniversary of the Armenian alphabet,
the Armenian Library & Museum of America (ALMA) will be exhibiting
a unique collection of 30 artworks of ornamental letters inspired by
medieval illuminations. The plates, originally drawn by master-restorer
Herra Karagozyan, represent samples of ornamentations drawn from the
thousands of manuscripts housed in the Mesrop Mashtots Matenadaran, the
Institute of Ancient Manuscripts in Yerevan, Armenia. The collection
on exhibit enables the visitors to view the evolution of the art of
ornamentation from 9th to late 15th centuries in Armenia.

The development of ornamentation in Armenian manuscripts emerged
with the creation of the Armenian alphabet in the 5th century
and the development of written literature. The tradition started
gradually: initially, ornamentations appeared on the title pages of the
manuscripts, and later, in "khorans", in margins, and in the details
of dominical and plot-oriented miniatures and on surrounding areas.

Zoomorphic, floral, and geometrical motifs, as well as heavenly
bodies and architectural structures were predominantly used in
Armenian ornamentation. The art of illuminations flourished in the
12th-14th centuries in the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia. Of all schools
of illuminations, the Cilician school is unique in the brilliance of
ornamentations and opulence of colors, including the application of
gold leaf to the manuscripts. Manuscripts became one of the original
places for the practice of Armenian fine art. The forms and colors of
these ornamentations were lasting creations of talented illuminators,
who were gifted with infinite imagination, limitless creativity,
and subtle taste.

One such contemporary artist was the celebrated miniature artist and
manuscript restorer Herra Karagozyan. A student of the famed Lidia
Durnova’s school of art restoration and reproduction in Yerevan,
Karagozyan was considered one of the most talented modern restorers,
particularly due to her fine perception of colors, keen artistic
taste, skillful drawings, and extraordinary attention to detail. Her
renditions of medieval manuscripts and frescos were difficult to
differentiate from the originals. Karagozyan worked for decades as a
restorer in the Matenadaran, and her works have been exhibited at the
National Art Gallery of Armenia and in Matenadaran. She worked on the
restoration and reproduction of the manuscripts of Gndevank and Haghpat
monasteries in Armenia and the St. Khach and St. Nshan monasteries
in the Crimea. Herra Karagozyan also participated in the restoration
of the frescoes painted by Hakob Hovnatan in the Echmiadzin Cathedral.

The exhibit of this unique art collection will be on display at
ALMA’s Terjenian-Thomas Gallery through January 31, 2007. Museum is
open to public on Thursday 6-pm, Friday and Sunday 1-5pm and Saturday
10am-2pm. For more information please contact ALMA offices 617.926.2562
or visit the website