Art at Last: Cafesjian center set for grand opening this weekend
Saturday, 07 November 2009 06:58 | 
| Latest News |
(525
/Armenianow.com/ After years of anticipation and delay brought on by economic turndown the Cafesjian Center for the Arts is scheduled to open in Yerevan November 7 in a grand weekend of celebration that will be witnessed by a world-renowned art critic and by the former wives of pop music icons.
/Armenianow.com/ After years of anticipation and delay brought on by economic turndown the Cafesjian Center for the Arts is scheduled to open in Yerevan November 7 in a grand weekend of celebration that will be witnessed by a world-renowned art critic and by the former wives of pop music icons.More than seven years since American-Armenian millionaire businessman and art collector Gerard L. Cafesjian unveiled plans to transform Yerevan’s decaying Cascade into a world-class center for arts, the center will open – albeit a diminished rendition from when it was announced in spring 2002 with a plan be opened within five years.
nitial plans called for a massive and contemporary-design museum to sit atop the Cascade, crowning the 800 or so outdoor stairs of the late-soviet period that stretches from near the Opera House to Victory Park high above city center.
But while the future of the main museum is in question, the inner territory of the Cascade – abandoned and bound for decay until rescued by Cafesjian’s foundation has been transformed into galleries that will, among other installations, house portions of Cafesjian’s exotic glass art collection, considered one of the most distinguished collections of the genre in the world.
The renovation of the Cascade has come with a $35 million price tag, and has turned a dank and crumbling pedestrian staircase, into a scenic gathering place for residents and visitors, marked by a statue garden in Tamanian Park with pieces from world-renowned sculptors including Fernando Botero.
Fanfare of this weekend’s grand opening will include a lecture by the lead art critic of the New York Times, Michael Kimmelman, author of the Pulitzer Prize nominated book The Accidental Masterpiece: On the Art of Life and Vice Versa.
Other guests for the weekend include Cynthia Lennon and Pattie Boyd – former wives of Beatles John Lennon and George Harrison.
Boyd will be on hand to open an exhibit of her photography “Pattie Boyd: Yesterday and Today”. an exhibit that has received acclaim on tours of Europe and North America. It will remain at the Cafesjian Center through January.
The ex-wives of legends will also participate in a question and answer session led by Michael De Marsche, Executive Director of the Cafesjian Center for the Arts. They will also sign copies of books each has written about their famous husbands (Boyd – known in pop circles as Eric Clapton’s muse for “Layla” was married to rock music’s legendary guitarist after she divorced Harrison).
The grand opening will also unveil Armenia’s first major show of the works of one of the most influential artists of the 20th century, Armenian-American Arshille Gorky. Gorky was a survivor of the Armenian Genocide who watched his mother starve to death on a desert march forced by Ottoman Turks in 1915.
From the personal Cafesjian collection, 16 drawings and 7 paintings by Gorky will be on display through January.
“The many preliminary drawings and oil sketches in this exhibition provide unparalleled insight into Gorky’s unique working method,” said De Marsche. “Gorky’s complex, large-scale compositions of cohesive design and universal theme continue to be viewed as some of the finest examples of American art at mid-century.”
The weekend’s series of events will kick off with a fireworks display are expected to be attended by President Serzh Sargsyan. Events are open to the public, though some require tickets.
(525)+934
