This monument dedicated to the 50th anniversary of the establishment of Soviet rule in Armenia is located on the edge of a ridge in northern Yerevan and is separated from Victory Park by Freedom Avenue.

Such a hilltop site was probably appropriate for this monumental structure; being visible from all directions and its lofty position underlining the structure’s symbolic circumstance. This is even more the case since at the time this ridge top delineated the northern boundary of the city. A tall stone column serves as the axis of the statue-complex that leads to a broad landing to the south, towards the city. Steps descending from an opening in the middle of the landing transform into a broad staircase that is known today as the Cascade. This links the statue with the city center and probably was intended to make it easier for people to visit the commemorative complex above. 

Next to the column, under a square roof, is an area that cuts down into the earth’s surface. There is a series of faucets that line the interior of this space that do not work and   probably never did work (The abundance of faucets of various sizes, possessing obvious symbolic meaning, is quite characteristic of this complex). Even though the entrances have been long since closed by way of metal gates, through the bars you can dimly see the stone placed in the center of the space with inscriptions regarding the statue’s construction. The text on the stone’s northern face states that the monument rises up, “ as a sign of the new renaissance of the Armenian people “ and that the builders sought to lay the base, “ as firm as that of the base of the Armenian world and its spirit like the spirit of the Armenian people soaring to the heavens”. On the other face of the stone we read, word for word, “Here, in the presence of the eternal peaks of Ararat and Aragats, the Armenian people accomplished their November revolution on November 29, 1920”.

Scattered on the outside walls, are these lines of poetry in Mesrobian script alongside of national decorative motifs, “ Oh fatherland, there is no dream more captivating than you, a name more sweeter than yours”, “ For all those whose spirit burns brightly”, “...the dawn of a radiant new morning, Welcome!”  

In fact, construction on the complex was quite lengthy but remained unfinished due to financial, technical-engineering, and other reasons. Uncompleted construction or construction finished with a variety of deficiencies and shortcomings is particular to many modern Armenian architectural examples from that period. Apparently, this statue is devoid of any notable aesthetic values and contrary to its scale and very favorable location it has never been viewed as one of Yerevan’s distinguishing monuments.

“Eternal Ararat” and “captivating dream”, “new rebirth” and “radiant morning”, “firm base” and “soaring spirit”, can perhaps be placed within the framework of nationalist rhetoric. What’s more problematic is the issue of the nationalized-privatized November revolution. Why was it necessary to make a revolution? Is a revolution a necessary prerequisite for each renaissance and in order to become a modern nation must one undergo a revolution? Today, it is difficult to understand if the authors of those inscriptions believed in such “staged” patriotism since they attempted to exclude every type of Soviet element from a monument dedicated to the 50th anniversary of Soviet Armenia. They probably didn’t observe, that in the end, the otherwise ridiculous proportions of their statue and the ontological optimism radiating from the lines mentioned above are both Soviet.

In any case, what is again striking is the absolute uncertainty of the outline of the self, the absence of the desire or incapability to differentiate the national from the Soviet in any way.  The legend of the national rebirth wipes out all traces of history; this time it’s the Soviet (implied Soviet “other”) being erased with a careless gesture of making it its own. The missing Soviet, socialist, communist and other words would have reminded one of this context, outside of which there would be no opportunity to speak of an Armenian renaissance, especially in that tone. And indeed, wouldn’t a similar type of nationalism had more served to dilute the national within the Soviet, in other words to Sovietize the national?

The Changing Cascade

Years ago the Cafesjian Foundation obtained the entire tract of land of the complex. Two works of Botero are situated at either end of the complex - The Roman Warrior (near the statue) and The Cat (in the park that leads to the Cascade from the Tamanyan Statue). 

Along the staircase are situated the works of a few other artists but many other works will be transferred to Yerevan only after the completion of proper exhibition facilities. Presently under construction immediately below the statue is the edifice to house the Cafesjian Museum of contemporary art. It is rumored that a large portion of Cafesjian’s personal collection will also be exhibited here as well.

Many are attracted to the Cascade, with its well-manicured lawns and escalator, as an area to take a stroll. Open-air concerts and other cultural events are staged here periodically. It is expected that the exhibition halls will gradually open and that various types of cultural attractions will be made available to the public. In other words it would seem that by becoming a rest area the Cascade aims to fulfill the role that Victory Park served during the Soviet period and still does today to a certain degree. It is assumed however that the culture to be propagandized here will greatly differ from similar locations in Yerevan. Here, we are talking specifically talking about contemporary art, which is only of interest to a narrow circle in Armenia. While museums devoted to contemporary art are very popular as ideal rest areas in other cities around the world, we shouldn’t confuse this with the popularity of modern art per say.

Returning to the comparison between Victory Park and the Cascade let me underscore that the basic similarity between the two areas lies in their being burdened with Soviet ideological symbols and objects. In both cases these symbols and messages are virtually incomprehensible and undecipherable. Particularly in the case of the Cascade these form that thick background, the basic method for arranging the site, that has remained standing, and upon which attempts are being made to construct an area containing new values and meanings.

Of course, in terms of embodying and reproducing Soviet values, Victory Park (with its Mother Armenia statue, Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, Heroes’ Alley, etc) has played a much more crucial role than the 50th Anniversary obelisk. The yearly May 9th celebrations, that took place with great pomp and circumstance and with their ritual repetitiveness and message, were much more meaningful to Soviet Armenians than the anniversary of the November revolution. This is despite the fact that, as we’ve remarked before, the latter was portrayed as a purely national event. Understandably, here the role of Soviet propaganda was also large since the cultural depiction of the war was a powerful tool in terms of the formation of the Soviet people and Soviet identity.

Soviet scales of dimension and the desire to synthesize national symbols are also evident within the confines of the Cascade and are manifested by the profusion of ornamentation plucked from Armenian architecture and stylized by the dictates of the monument’s massive proportions. As in many other places here too we are confronted with the intention to overlook the huge break between the pre-Soviet (pre-modern or traditional) and the Soviet (which is also modern in a certain sense) stages and to substitute it with manufactured national continuity. But, in the same manner the break between the Soviet and post-Soviet is neglected. Those rebuilding the Cascade are doing the same.

It is appropriate to ask exactly how the “soaring spirit” of the Armenian people relates to the Grand Time of the radiant communist future (the latter should have been the main message of the statue). Conversely, what is one to understand of Botero’s grotesque warrior, the obelisk designed in the spirit of Soviet monumentalism and the symbol of eternity of the Armenian people engraved in the lower part of the column all being in close proximity to the above-mentioned inscribed words (“ Oh fatherland, there is no dream more captivating than you, etc.). Clearly there’s a collision here between entirely different ideas and meanings - the pre-modern national, Soviet and what’s generally referred to as western. It is on the seemingly conciliatory background of the first two that the third is displayed as a glaring case of heterogeneity, as something without any meaningful connection to the context of its surroundings.

The importation of contemporary western objets d’art to the established landscape of the Cascade can be characterized as a purely mechanistic intervention. It is most likely that those responsible for such intervention had no problem understanding the cultural state of affairs. Perhaps, however, these new objects that violate the established material and symbolic arrangement, will force to call into question the surrounding area’s self-obviousness and perhaps serve to stimulate the reinterpretation and elucidation of the heterogeneity they bring.

In any case, the vision of the Cascade before us today is as incomprehensible as it is attractive. The forgotten or unfamiliar meanings of the site that the objects convey serve to alienate people from the material environment, ruling out any possibility of communication with its cultural context.