There is no need to prove that the vast majority of who is photographed, in comparison to the photographer (and the other project authors) is on a very low level of existence, if we can ascribe any social level at all, say, to the Sarikecili tribe living in the Taurus Mountains.
This May, we had the opportunity to see two photo exhibits here in Yerevan. One was an extensive exhibit of the works by the New York-based Turkish photographer Attila Durak on display at the Armenian Center for Contemporary Experimental Art (ACCEA) entitled "Erbru – Reflections of Cultural Diversity in Turkey". The other presented the works of French-Armenian photographer Max Sivaslian entitled "We Once Lived There..."
According to Kenneth Clark, landscape painting was not only the chief artistic creation of the 19th century, but also became the dominant art.
Those participating in the public demonstrations opposing foreign language schools have come from a variety of backgrounds and perspectives.
The joint struggle being waged against global warming by the nations of the world has long since received a specific expressed political measurement.
The 1960's are more than likely regarded as a decade of political and social activism, an era when a number of different social and cultural movements were borne. But new concepts also came to the fore; neo-colonialism, cultural imperialism, etc, which testified ...
The yearly reports of the Global Economic Forum, that refer to the network readiness of nations or, which is the same, the level of distribution and utilization of IT (Information Technologies), show that Armenia has experienced a drastic and steady downturn in its position.
The South Caucasus or the former Transcaucasia is a Russian and Soviet legacy in the sense that it started its formation as a region and geopolitical unit along with the Southern expansion of the Russian Empire and retained its status under the Soviet Union.
The economic and social crisis in Armenia following the collapse of the Soviet Union was accompanied by the decay and/or delegitimization and loss of prestige of various cultural institutions. Still functioning till today in Armenia are “creative unions” (the Writers’ Union, Composers’ Union, Painters’ Union, etc.) of the Soviet era that performed an important cultural-ideological mission that have lost one major segment of their...
Before moving on to the second theme of the article let’s take a somewhat more closer look at the issue of hegemony by continuing to analyze the examples presented and by attempting to formulate certain general conclusions.
Since the removal of the State of Emergency, Freedom Square, having been witness to a number of “dangerous” days, has been defended by soldiers and military equipment. It’s a fairly laughable picture - a square that is singed by the army and placards at the same time; on the one hand, an invitation for leisure sites and placards and on the other, military restriction. On one side the provincial mechanism for the “production of desires”...
Armenia is witnessing the dawning of a period of gloom. The indications of this are numerous - the incessant persecution of those in any way linked to the Movement, the continued labeling of a “certain segment of the nation” and its leaders, the detention of people either strolling, reading or playing chess along Northern Avenue and the interrogation of schoolchildren participating in local protests in Vanatur.
Decades ago the issue that received the name of “relations between Armenia and the Diaspora” definitely relates to the fate of the Republic of Armenia, to that of the Armenian communities in different countries of the world and to the identity of any Armenian who somehow associates himself with Armenia.
It is not hard to notice how similar the presidential candidates’ programs are. The reason is but understandable: none of them has been led by a certain set of political positions (be it democratic and nationalistic), they have been led by the simple and understandable wish of turning all the issues that seem important for the country and trouble the public at the moment into points in their political programs.
Yerevan has greatly changed. It’s a claim you hear made by a variety of people. Opinions may differ however when the question is whether the city’s changing for the better or for the worse. Additional interpretations, reservations and comparisons are also to be expected when discussing the matter.
A majority of Armenia’s population still lives in Soviet-built apartments; many have worn-out Soviet automobiles, television sets, refrigerators, washing machines, gas stoves, faucets and locks.
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.
For the Soviet empire the “historical victory” it registered in World War II (or the Great Patriotic War in the accepted parlance of the Soviet Union), became a powerful tool by which to breathe new life and impetus into the fading ideals of socialism.
Recently, I had the opportunity to be present at a debate about education reform among workers at the Yerevan State University. The occasion was the introduction of the credit system, the latest stage in the reforms. The main argument was that "the Soviet education system was the best in the world and there was no reason to change it."
The study shows, using the example of Taiwan, that the effects of globalization on a non-Western society can lead to a few different types or directions of transformation. These seem to be typical for societies which are forced to rebuild themselves to adapt to the new conditions and to make a place for themselves in the new global situation. But it is difficult to notice any of those signs or the possibility of any transformation in Armenia....
In Armenia’s neighboring countries, two processes typical of globalization have clashed - European enlargement, uniting different countries into one region and, on the other hand, an awakening of forgotten traditions, emphasizing separate identities and differences. Russia’s counterinfluence is more like an attempt to rejuvenate the ambition which was lost after the Empire fell, rather than a search for a new identity in the current conditions…
Hardly anyone would seriously ask today, “Is Armenia a part of Europe or not?” This was a question around which there was a lot of debate in the early years after independence, but which has since lost its urgency. Another formulation - “Armenia on the road to Europe” - is a lot fresher. This was the title of an international conference (and later the published conference report) organized by the Armenian Center for Humanitarian...
Let us once again review the complicated cartographical issue of the area surrounding the Opera.
Unlike certain words that have been removed from the vocabulary of modern politics - “rebellion”, “uprising” and “revolt” – “revolution” continues to be used, but with a different meaning, or in a much broader sense, sometimes even without any political tones.
Many people speak today about how the South Caucasus is an artificially created region, where the member countries have differing (and sometimes opposing) interests and wishes.
Lately there has been almost no talk of the development of the Internet and the Information Technology (IT) sector in Armenia.
Advertising in Armenia, including billboards on the streets, keeps changing over time. The means used to reach the population keep changing, as does the social significance of advertising in its various aspects.
Hrach Bayadyan talks to Ashot Khachatryan, president of Armenian Programs
The current introduction and use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in the secondary education system of Armenia has two features - the lack of coordination of the process and the simplified and superficial perception of the problem.
The issue of introducing Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) into the field of education in Armenia arises within the feverish process of the transformation and development of educational system, where numerous problems, diverse and, at times, opposing trends and interests, old values, and new imperatives collide.
As Information Technology (IT) and its various applications have become widespread, the demand for software throughout the world has steadily increased. In their turn, a number of least developed and developing countries have striven to occupy a place in the global software market by utilizing their cheap labor force and high level of education.
The first tier consists of major software exporting nations-such developed countries as the USA , Canada , France , Germany , and Japan , as well as the Netherlands , Sweden , Finland Switzerland, etc. They are joined by the three most successful nations of the 1990s - India , Ireland and Israel .
The information technology (IT) industry remains the priority sector of the economy of Armenia , and the existing volumes and prospects of software export are considered promising.
A natural question arises - what does the concept say about the development of the Internet; perhaps some principles for the solution of this issue of utmost importance have been worked out? But here, too, we are in for a disappointment.
Less industrially developed countries, without communication policy and planning infrastructures, are in a weak position to control resource applications that are influenced heavily by private international businesses with agendas differing from their own national development objectives.
Lately, sites have appeared on the "Armenian Web" that call themselves portals. It is pointless to compare them with big Internet portals (Yahoo!, AltaVista, and others) but it is not pointless to examine the Armenian portals, comparing them with each other, in the context of their creation and development.
More than half the people of the world are living in conditions approaching misery. Their food is inadequate, they are victims of disease. Their economic life is primitive and stagnant. For the first time in history humanity possesses the knowledge and the skill to relieve the suffering of these people.
The previous articles in this series on the process of disseminating and adopting Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) inArmeniadiscussed in general the problem of the local development of the Internet as well.
How can post-Soviet societies participate in the world process of development of information and communication technologies (ICTs)? What conclusions may be drawn from the experience accumulated so far?
Armenia's "great potential" in developing Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) is the main argument in the evaluations of the current situation and the predictions for the future.
The first of the events characterizing the years 1996 to 2002 was the adoption of a program to create a CIS common information zone. The second was the inclusion of Eastern European and the former Soviet states in European projects on the Information Society (IS).
At the mass rallies of the late 1980s, when speakers talked about the independence of Armenia, they mentioned Jermuk mineral water, tufa stone, molybdenum and other resources as the main economic foundation for independent existence.