Before, After: Reflections on the Armenian Genocide

Press Release

Before, After: Reflections on the Armenian Genocide will be on view at the William Paterson University Galleries in the Ben Shahn Center for the Visual Arts from September 9 through December 4, 2024. Gallery hours are Monday through Thursday from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., and on Saturday, October 26 and Saturday, November 23, from 10:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Admission is free. A conversation with exhibiting artists Talin Megherian and Marsha Nouritza Odabashian and curator Ryann Casey will be held in person on Wednesday, September 25, from 2:00 to  3:00 p.m., followed by an opening reception from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m., in the South Gallery, Ben Shahn Center for the Visual Arts.

Before, After traces generations of Armenian resiliency through the common threads of loss and survival. The exhibition examines connections passed down through blood, migration, and history, from genocide to diaspora to belonging. Artists John Avakian, Anush Babajanyan, Silvina Der-Meguerditchian, Vahagn Ghukasyan, Jackie Kazarian, Diana Markosian, Talin Megherian, Marsha Nouritza Odabashian, Ara Oshagan and Levon Parian, Jessica Sperandio, Scout Tufankjian, and Mary Zakarian integrate artifact with abstraction, witness accounts with recreation, old materials reused, and new molds made. The Armenian experience—both past and present, before and after—is showcased through a range of mediums and practices, reflecting the repeating patterns of grief, healing, and reflection.

This exhibition was first shown in 2021 at the Stockton University Art Gallery in Galloway, NJ and was curated by Stockton exhibitions coordinator Ryann Casey. Before, After emerged from an international workshop organized by several Stockton University research institutes and organizations, including the Refugee Studies Initiative, to mark 70 years since the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Refugee Convention. An updated version of the exhibition was hosted earlier this year at ReflectSpace Gallery in the Glendale Public Library, Glendale, CA, under the supervision of ReflectSpace curators Ara and Anahid Oshagan. This iteration sought to address critical developments in the Armenian world stemming from the forced displacement of over 120,000 indigenous Armenians from their ancestral lands after enduring a nine month-long blockade in Nagorno-Karabakh/Artsakh in the South Caucasus in 2023. The death and displacement of indigenous Armenians in 2023 are deeply and disturbingly reminiscent of 1915. The present installation brings together contributions from all 13 artists represented in both earlier versions, returning to New Jersey and the home of thriving diasporic communities of Armenian Americans, where legislators have recognized the Armenian Genocide on the state and local level, as well as recent attacks against civilians in the Republic of Artsakh  (SCR.71).

An immersive sound bath will be provided by Katherine Roman as part of William Paterson’s Wellness Day on Thursday, October 17 from 12:00 – 12:45 p.m. in the South Gallery. An interactive workshop titled “Drawing through Difficult History” will be led by Professor Leslie Nobler, William Paterson University Department of Art, on Monday, November 11, from 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., in the South Gallery. Additional programming will be announced; please check the University Galleries website for updated information.

The exhibition is one of three presented concurrently by the University Galleries. Before, After is bookended by The Armenian Genocide: One Family’s Story, on view in Cheng Library through May 14, 2025. One Family’s Story traces the journey of Arek and Moses Zakarian from the turn of the 20th century during the Ottoman Empire through genocide, survival, migration, and reemergence in the United States. Visitors will engage with the family’s personal photos, memoirs, musical instruments, artifacts, and artwork which serve as a backdrop to the broader history of the Armenian Genocide. This exhibition and programming is a collaborative effort between the University Galleries, the Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies, and Cheng Library to increase universal awareness of the Armenian Genocide, and to inspire individual reflection on the concept of postmemory, or the relationship that each generation bears to the personal, collective, and cultural trauma of those who came before us. The exhibition is made possible by the Zakarian grandchildren, led by Susan Arpajian Jolley and Allan Arpajian. As Susan and Allan explain, “The Zakarian experience mirrors the human condition, which for all of us contains degrees of tragedy and triumph, trauma and recovery. We invite you to reflect also on your own family’s history and experiences, and our common humanity.”

Also on view is the Faculty Exhibition 2024 in the Court Gallery from September 9 through December 4, 2024. This exhibition features work by faculty who teach animation, drawing, digital art, textile design, painting, photography, and sculpture. The works in the exhibit reveal the faculty’s unique artistic practices as they innovate across diverse media. Faculty artists included in the exhibition are Seth Bechtold, Miriam Bisceglia, Cristina De Gennaro, Andrea Geller, Ashley Gerst, Marsha Goldberg, Diane LaFranca, Leslie Nobler, Michael Rees, Anna Carina Sinocchi, and Papa Gora Tall.

The William Paterson University Galleries are wheelchair-accessible. Large-print educational materials are available. For additional information, please call the William Paterson University Galleries at 973-720-2654.