As I was leaving the studio of one of the most prominent contemporary French painters, Jansem, I asked him, “What are you going to do now, right after I leave?” He replied, “I’ll have a snack and will continue working.” That’s how the monologue that started with the words, “I love to paint,” should have ended.

Knowledge has been the most valuable asset throughout the history of civilization. How can we preserve it, pass it to our descendants, and not to lose it, harm it, break it, tear it, burn it, or erase it? Listen carefully to the Armenian words, examine the letters that form these words, and a great secret will reveal itself to you.

The reign of Tigran II was a period of a forceful outward expansion in the history of Armenia. The great Armenian king, a clever politician and strategist, transformed his country into a power-ful state which even threatened the mighty Rome.

History is made in a single attempt; it cannot be rewritten but only revisited. The physical history of Yerevan in the 20th century was written with a bold signature in a swift line and with a new vocabulary, without mistakes or scribbles. First on paper, and then in stone. The author of this new visual narrative was the architect Alexander Tamanyan.