The Society for Armenian Studies recently announced the recipients of its 2024–2025 “Best Conference Paper Award” and among the two awardees was the Zohrab Center’s own Arthur Ipek for his paper entitled, “Ecce philomela obispoensis: Tenny Arlen and her contribution to contemporary Armenian poetry.”

Ipek is currently a graduate student in the Department of Psychology at New York University and works part time for the Zohrab Center as research associate and special projects coordinator. He received a B.A. in Psychology and Linguistics from the University of Michigan. Apart from his professional career, he studies twentieth-century Western Armenian literature, and in particular, Armenian and World literature. He has published articles and poems in the Armenian-language press, such as the Istanbul-based newspapers Marmara and Jamanak and the Beirut-based Hamazgayin Pakine literary journal.

Ipek’s conference paper, presented at UCLA’s graduate student colloquium in February of this year, focuses on the late poet Tenny Arlen – younger sister of Zohrab Center’s director Jesse Arlen – who composed poetry while an undergraduate student at UCLA taking Western Armenian classes with Hagop Gulludjian between 2011–2013. In 2021, under Gulludjian’s editorship and with the support of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, her posthumous volume of poetry was published in Armenia by the ARI Literature Foundation in 2021 under the title Կիրքով ըսելու ինչո՞ւ հոս եմ (To Say with Passion: Why Am I Here?). Marking the first American-born Armenian-language poet to receive widespread acclaim from the literary and non-literary communities alike, this publication proved to be a watershed moment for the Armenian literary tradition. Ipek’s paper is an analysis of Arlen’s work, interpreting and contextualizing her poetry and situating her within the Armenian literary tradition.

“As I continue to expand my knowledge through research, it is encouraging to see that other scholars in Armenian studies share an interest in contemporary Western Armenian literature and its significance within the global literary landscape,” said Ipek. “By receiving the SAS prize, I will only be more motivated to deepen my knowledge and continue to write, all while bringing the voice of other writers to the forefront.”

An expanded version of Ipek’s award-winning paper is included as an afterword in the recently released bilingual edition of Tenny Arlen’s book of poetry, published by Tarkmaneal Press in 2025 and available from the NAASR bookstore or via Amazon. Ipek will join Jesse Arlen, Hagop Gulludjian, and Susan Barba in an online reading and book launch to be held over Zoom on Saturday, December 6th at Noon ET.

The Zohrab Center warmly congratulates Arthur Ipek on his award!
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