After months of eager anticipation, the splendid “Armenia!” exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City will finally open to the public on Saturday, September 22, beginning its run through January 13, 2019. This major exhibition features rare works of Armenian art from around the world—many of them never before displayed in the United States.
His Holiness Karekin II, the Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians, is traveling to New York to preside over the opening reception for the exhibit on September 24. (While there are no public gatherings scheduled for Catholicos Karekin II’s brief time in the city, he will be present at the United Nations General Assembly for the speech of Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.)
Since the exhibit’s inception, the Eastern Diocese and Diocesan Primate the Very Rev. Fr. Daniel Findikyan have taken active roles in the realization of “Armenia!” One of the exceptional items on display will be the 17th-century Voskan Bible that the Diocese is lending to the Met for this special occasion. Fr. Findikyan has contributed a scholarly essay to the magnificent exhibit catalogue, and blessed the exhibit during the “press preview” on September 20 (click here for photos).
Exhibit curator Dr. Helen Evans (the Met’s Mary and Michael Jaharis Curator of Byzantine Art, and a longtime friend of the Diocese) has brought together exquisite works covering 14 centuries of Armenian history: from the 4th through 17th centuries.
“This is the first major exhibition to explore the remarkable artistic and cultural achievements of the Armenian people in a global context,” Dr. Evans explained. Watch her overview of the exhibit in a short video on the Metropolitan Museum’s website by clicking here.
The Met’s website content includes photos and background on select objects of art, an interactive map of the medieval Armenian world, and online admission ticket purchasing. Click on the link to log onto the Met’s online preview of “Armenia!”