The Ottoman Cosmopolitanism AHRC Research Network, in collaboration with the Armenian Institute, presents an Ottoman Armenians Workshop: ‘A Return Through Art: Exploring Absence and Memory’ (London, Saturday 12 April 2014 3.00-5.30pm). For a full audio recording of the event, scroll down on our podcast/audio files page, here.
Program
3.00-3.15 pm: Welcome and Introductions
3.15-4.00 pm: Panel Presentations
4.00-4.30 pm: Roundtable Discussion
4.30-5.30 pm: Drinks and Nibbles
Chair – Gabriel Koureas
Birkbeck, University of London
Panel Participants
Ani King-Underwood
Resisting dispossession of history through film, inherited memories and trauma: visiting the ancestral home, city and land…Mersin
Ani, is a producer/director of factual programmes with long years of experience in making documentaries covering various parts of the world. However, she has a specialised interest in, and understanding of, the Middle East region. Much of Ani’s challenging and thought provoking work deals with human, minority and women’s rights.
Nouritza Matossian
Gorky’s Island
Nouritza is the author of two well-received biographies: Iannis Xenakis and Black Angel: The Life of Arshile Gorky, both of which have become subjects of films. Her one-woman show The Double Life of Arshile Gorky, where she impersonated four characters in the artist’s life, has been performed in over a hundred productions worldwide. Nouritza’s documentary Hrant Dink, Heart of Two Nations won the Public’s Prize in the Toronto Film Festival.
Vergine Gulbenkian
A Troubled Union: My Quest to Revive an Armenian/Turkish Siraveb (love epic)
Vergine has studied the craft of storytelling in different ways: theoretically – researching and writing an MPhil thesis on storytelling amongst Diaspora Armenians; from the point of view of collector – recording oral tradition on film, audio and writing in Armenia; as translator, working on written translations of love-epics, folk-tales and legends; and, primarily, in a practical way, as a storyteller.
David Low
Courtauld, University of London
Framing Genocide: Photography and the Revisualisation of the Ottoman Empire 1890-1923
David is a PhD Researcher at the Courtauld Institute currently working on thesis on photography, the Armenian Genocide and the end of the Ottoman Empire.
Vazken Khatchig Davidian
Birkbeck, University of London
An Imagined Armenia: Revisiting Garabed Nichanian’s Armenian Wedding in Moush
Vazken is a PhD researcher working on a thesis on the representation of hamals (porters) in late 19th century Constantinople, Realism and late Ottoman society.
Venue: The workshop will take place at Armenian House, 25 Cheniston Gardens, W8 6TG, Tube Station: High Street Kensington. While space is limited, the event is open and free of charge.
Armenian Institute
The Armenian Institute is a London-based registered charity dedicated to making Armenian culture and history a living experience in the Untied Kingdom through innovative programmes, educational resources, workshops, academic events, exhibits and performances. It provides intellectual, educational, cultural and artistic fora, where Armenians and other nationalities engage in creative endeavours.
Its work is supported by friends, patrons and voluntary donations. For more information about the Armenian Institute or to find out about supporting the important work of the institute, please visit their website, contact them at info@armenianinstitute.org.uk or call 02079383336.
ottomancosmopolitanism 