FROM ARMENIA TO BOURJ HAMMOUD, WITH LOVE
Simona Sikimic

Daily Star
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April 17 2010
Lebanon

BEIRUT: Towering over the sight of the old Vark Monastery of Bikfaya
is a bronze kneeling figure with hands raised skywards. Badly damaged
during the Civil War, the "Monument for the Armenian Genocide"
was reconstructed in the early 1990s and is now a pilgrimage site
for Armenians.

The creator, however, keeps a surprisingly low profile. During his
long career, Zaven Hadichian has exhibited no more than four times.

The exhibition currently on show at the recently opened Hamazkian
gallery in Bourj Hammoud therefore provides a rare chance to catch
the iconic 68-year-old’s work.

"I was the first person to have a monument for the genocide in another
country," said Hadichian, who completed the statue in 1965. "It was
a great achievement for me, I think about the statue and how it makes
music when the wind blows."

Reminiscent of this great work and created in Hadichian’s
characteristic fluid, futuristic style, the latest collection
comprises of dozens of smaller bronze and marble works dating back
to the early 1970s.

The angular, barely distinguishable statues stand side-by-side at
Hamazkayin’s spacious exhibition space with the work of Hadichian’s
daughter, Daria.

A talented painter in her own right and one somewhat more accustomed
to exhibiting – this is the fifth exhibition for the 35-year-old –
Daria Hadichian’s attempts at a distinctive form of Futurism mark a
break from her previous, largely figurative, painting.

Her large and vividly colorful acrylic-on-canvas works form a sharp
contrast to her father’s more monotone pieces.

"I usually hate all the fuss that comes from exhibiting and that
is why I don’t do it very often," Zaven Hadichian said. "But it has
been a pleasure holding this show with my daughter. It is something
I have wanted to do for a long time because she is very talented and
has embarked on something new."

What comes through in the elder Hadichian’s work, however, is a sense
of continuity. His pieces largely consist of diverging figures,
which fuse and intertwine effortlessly together in circular or
elliptical shapes.

"My inspiration over the years has been the universe and infinity,"
he explains. "I think you can see this in my work. Much of it is and
shaped as though spiraling into infinity.

"I work without thinking, by diving deep into my subconscious. There
is goal and there is the idea. There is the heart and there is the
head and what you create is a fusion of the two."

Hadichian shows no sign of slowing down. In his mind’s eye, he has
planned another large-scale work, "After the Liberty of Armenia,"
which he hopes one day to bring to fruition: "This is my dream and
for one I will keep waiting."

The Hadichians’ artwork can be seen at the Hamazkayin gallery in
Bourj Hammoud until April 19.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress