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Sin Chew Jit Poh
Oct 8 2011
Armenia guards ancient carpet-weaving traditions
by Mariam Harutyunyan
ECHMIADZIN, October 8, 2011 (AFP) - The smell of wool hangs thick in
the air at a small studio in Armenia's ancient spiritual centre of
Echmiadzin as women fashion carpets by hand using methods passed down
through generations.
"I love weaving carpets, the process takes away me somewhere and I
become oblivious to everything and think only of beautiful things,"
said one of them, deaf-mute Narine Badalian, using sign language
translated by an interpreter.
"You have to really concentrate in order not to make a mistake. If you
do even one knot incorrectly, the whole design won't work out," said
her colleague Nazik Karapetian without lifting her eyes as an image of
a stone cross took shape beneath her busy fingers.
People in Armenia, as in other Caucasus and Central Asian countries,
have been making carpets since pre-Christian times.
Armenian designs are usually multicoloured and geometric, and
sometimes bear symbols traditionally believed to have the power to
ward off evil spirits.
The Echmiadzin-based studio was set up as a charity project to employ
impoverished women and refugees who fled neighbouring Azerbaijan
during the 1990s war between the ex-Soviet neighbours over the
disputed region of Nagorny Karabakh.
But it also has another major difference -- it aims to use authentic
traditional methods and tools and to be environmentally friendly.
Wool for the rugs is processed without chemical dyes by elderly
refugees in remote villages than sent to Echmiadzin to be woven into
what one of charity project's leaders Grigor Babakhanian calls
"eco-carpets"
"In order to produce ecologically pure carpets, we decided to confine
ourselves to eight natural colours of sheep's wool, and not to dye
it," Babakhanian explained.
"Our goal is to give work to elderly women who became refugees during
the Karabakh war, to train young people in the art of carpet-making
and to revive traditional carpet-making techniques," he said.
Dozens of refugees have already been trained in hand-weaving by
Babakhanian's Cross of Armenian Unity charity foundation and it is
hoped that sales of the rugs will help to finance other refugee
programmes.
Major Armenian manufacturing companies also produce carpets using
traditional methods and designs, but the demand for handmade items has
fallen in recent years due to their rising cost, with many consumers
preferring cheaper machine-made rugs.
The authorities introduced tax breaks for handmade carpet
manufacturers two years ago in an attempt to help sustain the
industry.
"The development of carpet-making is of cultural and social
significance for Armenia, rather than economic," said Hayk Mirzoian,
an official at the country's economy ministry.
The carpets made by the women in Echmiadzin -- a former capital that
is still home to the head of Armenia's Christian church -- are
decorated with symbols derived from religious monuments and ancient
manuscripts.
"Our carpets advocate the national culture and national traditions,"
said Babakhanian.
His brother Gevorg, who creates the designs, said the use of pure
materials and spiritual imagery means that the finished products are
infused with "positive energy".
Although the concept of "eco-carpets" may be new in Armenia,
time-honoured carpet-making techniques are not dying out, suggests
ethnographer Ashgunj Pogosian -- although they remain in need of
constant protection.
"The traditions of Armenian carpet-making must be preserved and handed
on to future generations because they are part of our people's
historical and cultural heritage, they are part of our national image,
just like songs, the language and the alphabet," he said.
For Babakhanian, the uniqueness of the handmade work is also part of its appeal.
"Every carpet tells a different story," he said.
http://www.mysinchew.com/node/64822
Oct 8 2011
Armenia guards ancient carpet-weaving traditions
by Mariam Harutyunyan
ECHMIADZIN, October 8, 2011 (AFP) - The smell of wool hangs thick in
the air at a small studio in Armenia's ancient spiritual centre of
Echmiadzin as women fashion carpets by hand using methods passed down
through generations.
"I love weaving carpets, the process takes away me somewhere and I
become oblivious to everything and think only of beautiful things,"
said one of them, deaf-mute Narine Badalian, using sign language
translated by an interpreter.
"You have to really concentrate in order not to make a mistake. If you
do even one knot incorrectly, the whole design won't work out," said
her colleague Nazik Karapetian without lifting her eyes as an image of
a stone cross took shape beneath her busy fingers.
People in Armenia, as in other Caucasus and Central Asian countries,
have been making carpets since pre-Christian times.
Armenian designs are usually multicoloured and geometric, and
sometimes bear symbols traditionally believed to have the power to
ward off evil spirits.
The Echmiadzin-based studio was set up as a charity project to employ
impoverished women and refugees who fled neighbouring Azerbaijan
during the 1990s war between the ex-Soviet neighbours over the
disputed region of Nagorny Karabakh.
But it also has another major difference -- it aims to use authentic
traditional methods and tools and to be environmentally friendly.
Wool for the rugs is processed without chemical dyes by elderly
refugees in remote villages than sent to Echmiadzin to be woven into
what one of charity project's leaders Grigor Babakhanian calls
"eco-carpets"
"In order to produce ecologically pure carpets, we decided to confine
ourselves to eight natural colours of sheep's wool, and not to dye
it," Babakhanian explained.
"Our goal is to give work to elderly women who became refugees during
the Karabakh war, to train young people in the art of carpet-making
and to revive traditional carpet-making techniques," he said.
Dozens of refugees have already been trained in hand-weaving by
Babakhanian's Cross of Armenian Unity charity foundation and it is
hoped that sales of the rugs will help to finance other refugee
programmes.
Major Armenian manufacturing companies also produce carpets using
traditional methods and designs, but the demand for handmade items has
fallen in recent years due to their rising cost, with many consumers
preferring cheaper machine-made rugs.
The authorities introduced tax breaks for handmade carpet
manufacturers two years ago in an attempt to help sustain the
industry.
"The development of carpet-making is of cultural and social
significance for Armenia, rather than economic," said Hayk Mirzoian,
an official at the country's economy ministry.
The carpets made by the women in Echmiadzin -- a former capital that
is still home to the head of Armenia's Christian church -- are
decorated with symbols derived from religious monuments and ancient
manuscripts.
"Our carpets advocate the national culture and national traditions,"
said Babakhanian.
His brother Gevorg, who creates the designs, said the use of pure
materials and spiritual imagery means that the finished products are
infused with "positive energy".
Although the concept of "eco-carpets" may be new in Armenia,
time-honoured carpet-making techniques are not dying out, suggests
ethnographer Ashgunj Pogosian -- although they remain in need of
constant protection.
"The traditions of Armenian carpet-making must be preserved and handed
on to future generations because they are part of our people's
historical and cultural heritage, they are part of our national image,
just like songs, the language and the alphabet," he said.
For Babakhanian, the uniqueness of the handmade work is also part of its appeal.
"Every carpet tells a different story," he said.
http://www.mysinchew.com/node/64822