AGP Executive Report

Contemporary Armenian Art: “Many Visions, One Space” brought together 48 artists from Armenia, France and the United States for a three-day exhibition in California, showcasing the range of Armenian art today. Photography: Armenian wildlife photographer Berta Martirosyan spoke in Yerevan about using her images to inspire care for the country’s biodiversity. In Cairo, a new book pairs photographs by Stefan Ruiz with historic portraits by Armenian-Egyptian photographer Artin Sarafian. Music: A Yerevan gala celebrated opera singer Gegham Grigoryan’s 75th birth anniversary, with Plácido Domingo as guest of honour. Film and Heritage: The Arpa Film Festival has wrapped, while an Armenian genealogy conference a month away will explore how family records, photographs and personal memories preserve community history.

Photography & Nature: Armenian wildlife photographer Berta Martirosyan says her images can help people connect with endangered species and care about conservation; her work is featured on the UN Biodiversity platform as COP17 meets in Yerevan. Film: The Arpa International Film Festival wrapped its 29th edition with 51 films from 23 countries, including shorts, documentaries, features, animation and music videos. Classical Music: A Yerevan gala marking opera tenor Gegham Grigoryan’s 75th birthday featured Plácido Domingo as guest of honor. Visual Arts: Art Embassy will present “Silence,” a new project by artist Bagrat Arazyan. Diaspora Music: Hye House brings “Middle East River” to New York’s Melrose Ballroom on Oct. 24.

Film: The 29th Arpa International Film Festival wrapped with 51 films from 23 countries, spanning features, documentaries, shorts, music videos and animation. Music: Konstantin Petrossian’s anniversary concert paired jazz with Armenian sacred traditions, including the first mixed-choir performance of his “Vocalize.” Theater: Russian anti-war artists in exile are seeking new stages; director Maya Dorozhenko moved to Yerevan and began rehearsing in a cramped room. Cultural Heritage: An investigation into looting at Armenia’s ancient sites finds dozens of reported cases but no convictions, as archaeologists race to document the country’s past.

Armenian Studies: Armenia’s education ministry and Ghent University signed an agreement to offer courses on Armenian culture and history, alongside seminars and research events. Jazz and Tradition: The State Jazz Orchestra of Armenia marked Konstantin Petrossian’s anniversary with a concert blending jazz and Armenian sacred music, including a first choral arrangement of his “Vocalize.” Theater in Exile: A Russian anti-war director and actor who left Moscow for Yerevan describe trying to keep their work alive in exile, at first rehearsing in a cramped rented room. Cultural Heritage: A report from Aragatsotn warns that looters are stripping ancient sites while reported cases have yet to produce a conviction.

Live Music: System of a Down announced its first Rose Bowl headline show, set for June 5, 2027, with Pierce the Veil; the band is known for weaving Armenian musical influences into its sound. Cultural Heritage: Armenia’s Central Bank is issuing a silver collector coin honoring the Symphony of Stones basalt formation near Garni. Opera: Plácido Domingo joined a Yerevan gala celebrating tenor Gegham Grigoryan’s 75th birthday, with Grigoryan’s daughter, soprano Asmik Grigorian, and son, conductor Vardan Grigoryan, also taking the stage. Armenian State Symphony: The orchestra is set to accompany Andrea Bocelli at Abu Dhabi’s Yasalam Classics opener on Dec. 2. Folk Arts: A conference on Armenian folk and decorative-applied arts is planned in Yerevan and Dilijan.

Diaspora Music: New York’s Hye House will host its biggest event yet on Oct. 24, with an all-Armenian DJ lineup at a dance night celebrating Armenian and wider Middle Eastern roots. Armenian Heritage: A new silver collector coin, due Oct. 20, honors Garni’s Symphony of Stones, whose basalt columns evoke organ pipes. Yerevan Opera: Plácido Domingo performed at a gala honoring the late Armenian tenor Gegham Grigoryan on what would have been his 75th birthday. Cultural Traditions: An Armenian studies scholar reflects on karasunk, the 40-day customs observed after birth and death, and how they mark life’s passages. Photography: Stefan Ruiz’s new book, Cairo Portraits, revisits photographs of Cairo’s people, including Armenian-Egyptian Artin Sarafian.

Photography & Diaspora: A new book, Cairo Portraits, revisits the city’s people and the work of Armenian-Egyptian studio photographer Artin Sarafian, whose story had largely been forgotten. Cultural Heritage: Bzommar Monastery has opened a new manuscript repository and archive, developed with support from Matenadaran to help preserve its historic collection. Opera: Plácido Domingo performed in Yerevan at a gala honoring celebrated Armenian tenor Gegham Grigoryan on what would have been his 75th birthday. Creative Learning: The Hayastan All-Armenian Fund and TUMO are bringing a TUMO Box to Gyumri’s Mush district, expanding access to technology and creative education for young people.

Manuscript Heritage: A new repository and archive have opened at Bzommar Monastery, with Matenadaran specialists helping safeguard its centuries-old collection. Creative Learning: The Hayastan All-Armenian Fund and TUMO will bring a TUMO Box to Gyumri’s Mush district, expanding access to creative and technology education for young people. Opera Tribute: Plácido Domingo joined Armenian performers at Yerevan’s Opera and Ballet Theatre for a gala honoring tenor Gegham Grigoryan and his artistic legacy. City Landmark: Yerevan has unveiled a monument to beloved actor Frunzik Mkrtchyan in one of the capital’s parks.

Language & Identity: A new essay asks whether Armenia can become a living home for Western Armenian, tracing how diaspora speakers are shaping the language’s place in Yerevan. Opera: Plácido Domingo joined Armenian stars at the Yerevan Opera and Ballet Theatre for a gala honoring tenor Gegham Grigoryan; Domingo later shared highlights from the concert. Armenian Studies: Fresno State’s Armenian Studies Program marks 50 years as a formal program, building on more than six decades of Armenian history, language and culture courses. City Arts: Yerevan unveiled a monument to beloved actor Frunzik Mkrtchyan in one of the city’s parks. Folk Arts: A conference on Armenian folk and decorative-applied arts is set to bring researchers together in Yerevan and Dilijan.

Opera Tribute: Plácido Domingo joined Armenian and international performers in Yerevan for a gala honoring celebrated tenor Gegham Grigoryan on what would have been his 75th birthday. Grigoryan’s children, soprano Asmik Grigorian and conductor Vardan Grigoryan, also took part; Domingo later called it a “wonderful evening.” Cultural Heritage: UN Secretary-General António Guterres visited Yerevan’s Matenadaran, praising the work preserving its manuscripts and Armenian cultural history. Armenian Studies: Fresno State’s Armenian Studies Program marks 50 years as a formal program, with courses spanning Armenian history, language, art, literature and culture.

Film: Eight restored works by Armenian director Artavazd Pelechian were showcased at the New York Film Festival, renewing attention to his distinctive “distance montage” style. Music: Plácido Domingo is set to perform in Yerevan at a gala honoring late Armenian tenor Gegham Grigoryan on what would have been his 75th birthday. Contemporary Art: Art Embassy will present “Silence,” a new project by artist Bagrat Arazyan. Cultural Heritage: UN Secretary-General António Guterres praised the Matenadaran’s work preserving Armenian manuscripts during a visit, and also toured Yerevan’s TUMO creative technology center. Books & Identity: Actor Joe Manganiello’s new memoir, Bloodlines, explores his Armenian family history and his great-grandmother’s survival of the Genocide.

Contemporary Art: Bagrat Arazyan’s “Silence,” a show of 13 digitally altered photographs exploring the boundary between “here” and “the beyond,” opens at Yerevan’s Art Embassy on Oct. 17. Opera: Plácido Domingo is set to perform in Yerevan at a gala honoring Armenian tenor Gegham Grigoryan on the 75th anniversary of his birth. Armenian Art: The Armenian Museum of America opens “Beyond the Curtain,” an exhibition on materiality and devotion, on Oct. 22. Cinema: Five Armenian films are set to screen at New York’s Asia Society.

Opera Gala: Plácido Domingo and Armenian soprano Hasmik Grigoryan will perform in Yerevan at a concert honoring the late tenor Gegham Grigoryan on what would have been his 75th birthday. His son Vardan will conduct. Armenian Heritage: Actor Joe Manganiello’s new memoir, Bloodlines, traces his Armenian family history, including his great-grandmother’s survival of the Genocide. Cultural Heritage: UN Secretary-General António Guterres visited Yerevan’s Matenadaran, praising the people who preserve its collection of Armenian manuscripts. Art and Scholarship: A conference on Armenian folk and decorative-applied arts is planned in Yerevan and Dilijan, while the Armenian Museum of America will open its exhibition Beyond the Curtain on October 22. Community Music: Boston’s Holy Trinity Armenian Church held its inaugural choral and chamber music festival, bringing together more than 100 performers.

Music: Holy Trinity Armenian Church near Boston launched its first choral and chamber music festival, bringing together more than 100 performers for Armenian and American works. A separate October 25 piano recital will honor Armenian Cultural Foundation leader Robert Mirak with music by diaspora composers, including world and U.S. premieres. Folk Arts: Yerevan and Dilijan host an October 17–18 conference on Armenian folk and decorative arts, exploring preservation, education and links with contemporary design. Exhibitions: The Armenian Museum of America opens “Beyond the Curtain” on October 22, showcasing more than 20 objects that reveal the materials and artistry behind Armenian devotional life. Film: Armenian-Australian filmmaker Tigran Tovmasian’s short “The Circus Lion,” about a young wrestler confronting grief and hardship, is gaining attention at festivals. Yerevan Culture: A monument to beloved actor Frunzik Mkrtchyan was unveiled in the city, while Placido Domingo is set to perform at a gala honoring tenor Gegham Grigoryan.

Arts & Heritage: The Armenian Bar Association presented historian Dr. Edita Gzoyan with its Hrant Dink Freedom Award, recognizing her work defending historical truth and academic independence. Yerevan also unveiled a monument to beloved actor Frunzik Mkrtchyan. Opera: Plácido Domingo and Hasmik Grigoryan will perform at the Opera and Ballet Theatre on Oct. 16 in a gala honoring the late tenor Gegham Grigoryan’s 75th birthday; his son Vardan will conduct. Film: Armenian-Australian filmmaker Tigran Tovmasian’s festival-recognized debut short, The Circus Lion, follows a young wrestler facing grief and hardship. Tovmasian says acting in the film challenged him to show vulnerability. Screen Arts: Armenian actor Samvel Tadevossian is among six artists named for the inaugural Golden Globes Silk Road Tribute Gala in Tashkent on Oct. 23–24.

Opera: Plácido Domingo will join soprano Hasmik Grigoryan for an October 16 Yerevan gala honoring the late tenor Gegham Grigoryan on what would have been his 75th birthday. Visual Arts: The EDEN exhibition opened in Tashkent with Armenian artist Irina Metz among its international participants. Yerevan Culture: A monument to beloved actor Frunzik Mkrtchyan was unveiled in one of the city’s parks. Film: Five Armenian films are set to screen at New York’s Asia Society, while a feature on the 1962 short Dzhvzhig revisits a landmark of Soviet Armenian cinema. Music: French-Armenian singer Bakian will celebrate Charles Aznavour’s legacy in Yerevan, and a new exhibition looks back at System of a Down’s landmark album Toxicity. Fashion: Yerevan Fashion Week 2026 has opened.