Exhibition - En relief, créer en Arménie

Description

Just as a twinning agreement has been signed between Saint-Étienne and the town of Kapan in southern Armenia, the 13th Biennale Internationale Design de Saint-Étienne is giving pride of place to this country and contemporary design.

In a scenography designed by Normal Studio, the En relief, créer en Arménie exhibition explores the intimate relationship between artists and their environment and seeks to show how territory is a resource that nourishes practices and imaginations.

The three curators, Jean-François Dingjian, Eloi Chafaï and Nairi Khatchadourian, present the work of around fifteen Armenian designers including Sargis Antonian, Shant Charoian, Movses Der Kevorkian, Davit Kochunts, Anush Ghukasyan, Arsen Karapetyan, Noro Khachatryan, Piruza Khalapyan, Khoren Matevosian, Gayane Sofoyan, Ariga Torosian, Studio Triniti, snkh., TUMO, AHAcollective, ICA Yerevan, Berq Studio, Hripsime Simonyan (1916-1998), KamoNigarian (1950-2011), all of them driven and inhabited by energy, elegance andfreedom. And it is indeed inventiveness that is the designer’s resource in Armenian society.

The exhibition also pays tribute to two leading figures of the modernist era, whose ingenuity has influenced many contemporary designers. Multifaceted artists, Hripsime Simonyan (1916-1998) and Kamo Nigarian (1950-2011) made a major contribution to the development of industrial design and the applied and decorative arts in Armenia during the Soviet era. The works and archives exhibited offer a visual and historical counterpoint to the contemporary creations of Armenia’s youth.