Publication details
Armenofobie. Umění [a] marginalizace
| Title in English | Armenophobia. Art [and] marginalization |
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| Authors | |
| Year of publication | 2024 |
| Citation | |
| Description | Can art history change the borders of modern states? At the very least, this question sounds far-fetched; given the role of the field in current society, we would say it is almost absurd. And yet there are exceptions, unfortunately often very sad ones. One of them, for example, is the impact of how Armenian medieval art was studied in Tsarist Russia. After the annexation of the Armenian territories to the Russian Empire in the 19th century, the main idea of Tsarist propaganda was the concept of friendship and "brotherhood" between the Russian and Armenian peoples. This rhetoric, by the way, is still used in the Russian media today. In reality, however, the sit uation was quite different from the beginning. The entire Caucasus region was perceived as a mere province of the empire, and its art (including historical art) was presented as one comprehensive cultural phenomenon, almost slavishly dependent on the Byzantine tradition. Thus, in the texts of contemporary art historians we regularly encounter a colonial view of Georgian and Armenian art. However, colonialism is also felt on another level: according to Russian scholars, there was no equality between the peoples and cultures of the region. Using the example of late 19th century scholarly publications on the medieval heritage of the Caucasus, we will see that the Armenian people were systematically marginalised and their art was presented as clearly inferior, even pagan. Moreover, at that time, Russian propaganda and laws tried to suppress Armenian culture in every possible, sometimes very brutal, way. But how can this situation, still seemingly far removed from our time, be relevant in today's world? In this lecture, we will try to show to what extent the events of the late 19th century are directly linked to the current events in Nagorno-Karabakh, a situation that is difficult to define as anything other than a cultural genocide. |