EXHIBITION DEDICATED TO GENOCIDE TO OPEN IN GLENDALE

PanARMENIAN.Net
08.04.2009 01:04 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Genocide is not a thing of the past and a new art
exhibit at the Brand Library in Glendale (California, US) aims to show
visitors the savage quality of mass killings that persist around the
globe, organizers said.

The exhibit, more than 70 works by 44 artists, held its opening
reception Saturday to a packed house of visitors who were frequently
taken back by the imagery and symbolism of the pieces, Glendale News
Press reports.

Some works incorporated startling images of genocide, others were more
abstract, incorporating themes of struggle, suffering or disregard
for the value of human life, artists said.

The show, organized by the Arts and Culture Commission and called
"Man’s Inhumanity to Man," is meant to use art to illustrate
to visitors that genocide is real and has harsh effects, even if
it seems to occur in distant parts of the world, curator Ramela
Abbamontian said.

While art related to the Armenian Genocide is prominent in the exhibit,
works from artists of various backgrounds were on display and all of
them were commentaries on the atrocious impacts of systematic killings,
like those currently occurring in Darfur, Sudan, artists said.

"This is not only about genocide, it’s about atrocity," said Ripsime
Marashian, the city’s cultural affairs coordinator.

A black-and-white photograph of an old man placed above a handwritten
narrative that detailed a childhood experience during the Armenian
Genocide, resonated with at least two visitors.

The account of young boys being stabbed by Turkish soldiers was
startling, said West Los Angeles residents Eileen Joyce and Jeff
Braucher.

The exhibit will be open daily until May 8 and the commission will
host two special events for gallery visitors, an evening of music
and poetry April 15 and a set of discussions with the artists and
curator April 18.