About

FROM DISASTER TO THE ARTS 

My first stay in Armenia happened in 1991. It was about building a new paediatric hospital in by that time Leninakan, today’s Gyumri. The previous hospital had been completely destroyed by the disastrous earthquake of December 1988. I shall never forget walking through the ruins left of Armenia’s second largest city.

The hotel I chose for my stays was a meeting place for them and I had many lively exchanges there. Today this hotel’s name is rightly “The Berlin Art Hotel”, which displays pieces of art of regional artists in all its rooms. 

When we commemorated the 20th anniversary in Vienna of Gyumri’s disastrous earthquake by means of a charity concert with “The Armenian Spirit” group, I met Karen Asatrian. He offered me many insights to the world of Armenian music. Until then I knew melancholic folklore only, underlined with Duduk-tunes. Asatrian knows to open new perspectives to the tradition of Armenian folk music by means of today’s stylistic devices such as classic and jazz.

In the area of fine arts Hrachya Vardanyan deserves attention. Asatrian, who did his studies in Yerevan, lives in Austria (Klagenfurt) for many years already. Vardanyan is from Gyumri, where he completed his studies at the Art College in 2010. I follow his carerr as an artist since he was 18. Three expositions and one stay as an artist in residence in Austria are his milestones.

When Karen Asatrian and his “Armenian Spirit” performed at the Stadtmuseum Wiener Neustadt, Vardanyan’s paintings covered the walls. That was the birth of a friendship which culminates in the motto: To listen with the eyes and see with the ears!

Hans Döller, Vienna (chairman)