MIRACLES DO NOT EXIST: HOVSEP RESPONDS TO SHOGHAKAT VARDANYAN'S 1489

It is September 21st, Armenia’s Independence Day. I glance at my calendar, which also marks today as the UN's International Day of Peace. As if in some sick, premeditated joke, today marks a year since the forces of Artsakh were finally and completely defeated, resulting in a hundred thousand people fleeing their homes and the dissolution of the breakaway republic. I read an article by my friend Grikor Atanessian, and the opening line cuts deep: "For the first time in over a millennium, there are no Armenians left in Nagorno-Karabakh." You might theorise that a year is a short amount of time in the grand scheme of things, but it’s an eternity for nationhood. There isn’t much room for naivety. We lost.

Historical documents show that my ancestors resettled from Artsakh to Ijevan under Russian rule in the 19th century. It has been four years since the 44-Day War, and I still can’t shake the feeling that giving up Artsakh is ingrained in my DNA, predestined. As if I relinquished it two hundred years ago and now have no say in the matter, left with only a lingering sense of shame.

Watching Shoghakat’s film was heartbreaking, like tearing into a newly healed wound. There are tender moments throughout—a beautiful family portrait—but the ending felt like complete darkness. No way out.

Diplomacy feels like a distant memory. The borders are now less secure, and so is our faith. There are even fewer of us now. It will be harder, but the only thing we can do as a people is to keep going—to be, to build, to persevere. Grace will come through unity and hard work. I still believe.

GUEST CURATOR’S BIO

Hovsep is an Armenian musician and founder of HyperKavkaz, a label spotlighting diverse talent from the Caucasus region. As part of his response, he compiled a playlist of Armenian music with the inherent feel of sorrow and glimpses of hope.

LINK TO THE PLAYLIST︎