Armenian studies in the heart of the Armenian diocese
Come together tonight Thursday, September 21st, at 5:00pm for a community gathering in St. Vartan Cathedral, in light of the crisis in Artsakh. The gathering will go forward under the auspices of Fr. Mesrop Parsamyan and Archbishop Anoushavan Tanielian.
Afterwards, come down to Guild Hall for a Zohrab Center sponsored book release event, with Christopher Atamian presenting his translation of a new novel by Denis Donikian.
The Zohrab Information Center cordially invites you to attend the Vemkar Zoom lecture series, entitled “Entering the World, Mind, and Soul of St. Nersess Shnorhali.” Organized in commemoration of the 850th anniversary of the saint’s repose and in response to the pontifical encyclical of His Holiness Karekin II issued earlier this year (ARM ENG), the lecture series begins a week from today on Tuesday, August 22nd at 7:00pm ET and runs six consecutive Tuesday evenings through September 26th.
Please register in advance for the Zoom lecture series.
A flyer with the speaker and title info for each session is available below:
The Diocesan Center will host the New York debut of a documentary film, The Mystery of Honey Bee Society, on Friday, July 21, at 7 p.m., in Haik & Alice Kavookjian Auditorium (630 Second Ave., New York).
The film is by an Armenian production team led by longtime public servant Gagik Harutyunyan: the former President of Armenia’s Constitutional Court, who has devoted his retirement from public life to apiculture: the study and care of bees. It describes the intricacies of bee society, and warns about the danger of a possible extinction of bee species.
Click the following links to watch the film trailer on YouTube, and learn more about the project on its website. You can also download a sample of the book by Mr. Harutyunyan, on which the documentary is based.
Atamian Hovsepian Curatorial Practice is pleased to present a bilingual reading of Tenny Arlen’s important book of Armenian verse entitled Կիրքով ըսելու՝ ինչո՞ւ հոս եմ (To Say with Passion: Why Am I Here?) (Yerevan: ARI Literature Foundation, 2021). As one of the first full-length volumes of creative literature composed in Armenian by a US-born author after over a century of Armenian-American community development—this is a landmark achievement. Christopher Atamian, Dr. Jesse S. Arlen, and Arthur Ipek will read and discuss selections from Tenny Arlen’s book of verse.
The event will take place at the new gallery of Atamian Hovsepian Curatorial Practice located at 227 E 24th Street New York, NY, 10010 on Tuesday, June 27th at 6:30pm. Note, the gallery is closed on Tuesdays and will open at 5:30 for this special event.
Please RSVP to info@atamianhovsepian.art
The Zohrab Information Center invites you to attend two upcoming events in NYC.
On Tuesday, June 6th, at 7:00pm, “Khachaturian: An Archival Film” will be screened at Kavookjian Hall in the Diocesan Complex to commemorate Aram Khachaturian’s 120th birthday. Before the screening, introductory remarks will be made by pianist and composer Şahan Arzruni.
On Wednesday, June 14, at 6:00 P.M., under the leadership of Prof. Harold Takooshian, the inaugural public forum titled “Remarkable Facts About Armenians” will be held at Fordham University’s Lincoln Center Campus, 113 West 60th Street (near 9th Avenue), Room 604. There will be discussed not well known facts about Armenians in New York City (Prof. Takooshian) and in three legal matters at turnings points in history (Souren Israelyan, Esq.) that touch upon the existential question as to who we are as people and what makes Armenians so remarkable.
Both programs are free and all are welcome to attend.
“The Shape of the Sacred: Eastern Christianity and Architectural Modernity,” an international conference organized by the Orthodox Christian Studies Center of Fordham University and the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America opened this evening, Tuesday, May 30th, at Fordham University’s Lincoln Center Campus.
This three-day public international symposium explores the challenges of the dialogue between contemporary architecture and theological concepts of space. Sponsored by the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America in association with Fordham University, the symposium will be the first of its kind in North America. It honors the recently built and consecrated Saint Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church and National Shrine, located at the World Trade Center and designed by Santiago Calatrava. The symposium includes a special event at Saint Nicholas Shrine featuring a welcome address by His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros of America and a keynote conversation.
To find information on the conference schedule, which is free and open to the public, visit: The Shape of the Sacred: Eastern Christianity and Architectural Modernity | Fordham
To register visit: Forever Fordham – The Shape of the Sacred: Eastern Christianity and Architectural Modernity – Registrant
For those unable to attend in person, the conference may be livestreamed at the following link: https://publicorthodoxy.org/the-shape-of-the-sacred/
On Thursday morning, David Hotson, architect, will present “The Making of Saint Sarkis Church, Dallas” on a panel titled “Tradition Today and Tomorrow.” Saint Sarkis Church is also one of the sacred buildings featured on a poster at the exhibit that opened at the start of the conference.
We invite you to join us for three upcoming in-person literary events in New York City, the first two of which are part of the Literary Lights series organized by the International Armenian Literary Alliance (IALA), the National Association for Armenian Studies and Research (NAASR), and the Krikor and Clara Zohrab Information Center: Deanna Cachoian-Schanz, translator of Shushan Avagyan’s A Book, Untitled, will be in conversation with Dr. Lisa Gulesserian on March 29, and Aram Mrjoian, editor of the anthology We Are All Armenian: Voices from the Diaspora, will be joined by volume contributors Chris Bohjalian, Nancy Kricorian, Scout Tufankjian, and Hrag Vartanian on April 3.
On April 13, the Zohrab Information Center is hosting a poetry night (քերթուածի գիշեր), featuring experimental and innovative young poets reading from their original works in English and Armenian: Hrayr Varaz (Հրայր Վարազ), Alina Gregorian (Ալինա Գրիգորեան), Aram Ronaldo (Արամ Ռոնալտօ), Jesse Arlen (Ճեսի Արլէն), Lillian Avedian (Լիլիան Աւետեան), Sharisse Zeroonian (Շարիս Ծերունեան).
See below for details of time and place!
Tonight in-person at Guild Hall of the Diocesan Center, from 6:30–8:30pm, the Armenian Assembly of America is hosting a community briefing on Armenia & Artsakh with a panel of experts, activists, politicians, and attorneys.
A reception will follow. The event is open to the public. For questions, contact Taleen at taleen@aaainc.org
Zohrab Info Center director Dr. Jesse S. Arlen will deliver the final two lectures in the St. Nersess Armenian Seminary 2023 Spring Public Lecture Series.
Thursday, March 9th: “Nahapet Kuchak and the Hayren”
Thursday, March 16th: “Sayat Nova and the Ashugh Tradition”
For ZOOM registration, click here. To learn more about the series, click here. To watch the recordings of previous sessions in this series, click here.
Watch “Mkrtich Naghash: A Medieval Poet for Our Times,” a lecture by Dr. Jesse S. Arlen, to learn about the life and context of Mkrtich Naghash and get a taste of his verse in English and Armenian, to enhance your appreciation for the works of this great 15th century Armenian poet, bishop, and manuscript illuminator before the North American debut tour of The Naghash Ensemble.
