Neery Melkonian Presents Work of NK (Nagorno-Karabagh) ARTS in Shushi

On Wednesday, March 5 the Armenian Studies Program and the Armenian Students Organization hosted a special presentation by Neery Melkonian of NK ARTS.

NK ARTS is a non-profit organization that was started by Melkonian in the spring of 1999, to introduce the rich culture of Nagorno-Karabagh (Artsakh) to the world. Nagorno-Karabagh is an independent republic in the Caucasus, where its predominantly Armenian population fought a six-year war with neighboring Azerbaijan for its independence.

As an artist, Melkonian wanted to get involved in Armenia or Karabagh, and chose to begin her project out of a feeling of social responsibility. The Minister of Culture of Karabagh had been a guest of Melkonian’s in New York, and invited her to Karabagh.

Because of the region’s natural beauty and its historical monuments Karabagh was an ideal site for developing cultural tourism.

The plan was to develop an annual cultural festival in the city of Shushi, so in 2001 NK ARTS held its first annual arts festival. More than 1200 people enjoyed the music and the arts that were presented.

NK ARTS consists of five branches, of which the Shushi festival is the conduit. The goal is to make the festival into an international destination for world festival goers. The Karabagh government has been helpful to NK ARTS, providing logistical support and transportation.

One of these five branches was the establishment of an artisan workshop in the village of Nungi. Nungi has a population of about 400 people and has been known for 200 years as a dynamic ceramic center. Only one ceramics master, Vartan, still remains and makes potterty as it used to be made; using his advice, they restarted the activities. The government provided the old workshop. No electricity or running water are available at the site. A horse operates the clay mixer just like old times.

Each branch of the project has an outside director as a way of linkage. Jeff Ryan, a potter from the United States, lived in the village for a year, supervising the revival of the pottery operation. Apprentices were hired and trained and are paid as full-time workers. NK ARTS will distribute the ceramics produced in the workshop in the United States. The pottery which they produce can also become something which will be useful in Armenia because of the the need to produce roof tiles and bricks for the building boom in Armenia and Karabagh.

Future projects for NK ARTS are to introduce Karabakh’s traditional folk-remedies to the West. The use of herbs for organic treatments has a long history in Karabakh, and some of these treatments are unknown in the United States. A professor from Armenia has already begun to identify some of the compounds which could be used commercially.

This year NK ARTS will also be producing a documentary film on Nagorno-Karabakh, which will be shown on cable television channels such as The History Channel and Discovery Channel.

NK ARTS’ goal is to motivate the people to feel proud and dignified. It provides the people of America with knowledge on Karabakh’s arts and cultures, and it also gives Nagorno-Karabakh recognition in the world community.

The second year of the Shushi Festival, held in 2002, was devoted to film. The third year of the Festival will be devoted to theater and dance and will be held in September 2003.

The lecture, which was part of the Spring Lecture Series of the Armenian Studies Program, was held in the Alice Peters Auditorium.