How do we transform memory into resistance? How can art, education, and collective action confront the weight of historical injustice and build bridges across communities?
This weekend, the Center for Armenian Arts invites you to explore these urgent questions at Memory, Resistance & Transnational Solidarity: From 2012 to the Present and Beyond—a two-day international seminar that gathers scholars, legal experts, artists, curators, and human rights advocates in a shared space of inquiry and dialogue.
Over the course of two days, participants will delve into the intersections of historical denial, comparative justice, memorialization, and freedom of expression. Through keynote presentations, panel discussions, and open conversations, distinguished speakers from leading academic, legal, and cultural institutions will share their research and lived experiences in advancing justice and fostering solidarity across borders.
The seminar asks: What role do museums, exhibitions, and public art play in preserving historical memory? How can education and advocacy challenge erasure and amplify silenced voices? And how do we build transnational networks of solidarity that honor the past while shaping a more just future?
The program also features the opening of the ReflectSpace exhibition—a powerful visual experience that commemorates survivors and invites dialogue across communities. Through art, the exhibition creates space for reflection, remembrance, and connection.
Behind this initiative stands an older man with a white beard—no, not God. Stepan Partamian: irreverent, politically incorrect, charming, scathing, provocative. Genuine, forthright, authentic—much like Armenia itself. Partamian is the founder and executive director of the Armenian Arts Fund and the driving force behind the Center for Armenian Arts. He is no distant sage dispensing wisdom from on high, but a hands-on advocate who has worked tirelessly, alongside his passionate team, to create spaces where memory is honored, culture is celebrated, and solidarity is built.
This event is for everyone: students, educators, researchers, artists, activists, and community members seeking to deepen their understanding of historical memory and engage in meaningful conversations about justice and remembrance.
Join us.
Event Details:
📅 Seminar Dates: Saturday, July 25 – Sunday, July 26, 2026
🕐 Time: 11:00 AM – 4:30 PM
📍 Location: Center for Armenian Arts, 250 N. Orange Street, Glendale, CA 91203
🎨 ReflectSpace Exhibition Opening:
📅 Saturday, July 25, 2026
🕐 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM
📍 222 E. Harvard Street, Glendale, CA 91202
Whether you come to listen, to learn, or to contribute your voice, this seminar offers a rare opportunity to connect with experts from diverse fields and participate in a collective effort to honor memory, resist injustice, and build solidarity that transcends borders.
Memory is not passive. It is a call to action.
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