My Journey

Art has been my passion since I was little. I was born in Armenia, a country with a rich tradition of the arts. It is in this environment of a broad range of cultural and historical legacies that I spent my formative years. Growing up, I studied among well-known artists working and living in Armenia. Outside of school, I pursued numerous art media including painting, print making and pottery. By the time I graduated in 1994, I was teaching graphic arts and printmaking at an innovative and experimental school launched in Armenia at the time of its independence. 

In 1999, I was awarded a UNESCO Ashberg grant by the Austrian Federal Chancellery, to participate in the artist-in-residence program. I held a solo exhibition of contemporary graphic art at the Gallery Jutner.

​In 2010, I moved to the country of Georgia where I studied cloisonné enameling with local masters who have kept this vibrant and colorful art form alive. Since then, I have followed my passion for this technique by attending specialized workshops throughout the United States. 

Starting in 2012, I spent four years living in Haiti where a vibrant culture inspired me to embrace more light and character in my enamel works. I was also able to return to one of my passions: teaching. I taught cloisonné and alternative enameling techniques and pottery to Haitians and the diverse expatriate community.

ARTIST STATEMENT

I specialize in the creation of unique enamel art jewelry pieces, crafted on fine silver, copper and gold. Jewelry is a form of art that I’ve been practicing since I was a little girl. Little field flower tiaras, aluminum foil rings, paper cut bracelets and necklaces made with twigs, and all kinds of found objects. Throughout the years these objects have gone through transformations by refining their shapes and aesthetic appearance. I use a combination of traditional and alternative enameling techniques to express my perspectives on our contemporary life. Enameling has become my preferred form of expression, combining elements and approaches from a succession of art media that I have practiced throughout my creative life. I find myself completely absorbed by the successive transformation of my enamel pieces, each step and firing marked by a tweak of the ‘unexpected’ hue or shade. The process itself, whether laying down the cloisonné wires or waiting in front of the kiln, allows me to meditate and connect with a certain alchemic magic. I strive to achieve a finish that allows my colors, shades and foil to play with the light, and provide a tactile feel that is unique to this form of jewelry.

AWARDS AND EXHIBITIONS

AWARDS

2021 - Award for Excellence in Technique, Romanian Jewelry Week, Bucharest, Romania
2020 - Finalist, Prix François-Houdé, Montréal, Canada
2019 - Finalist, Prix François-Houdé, Montréal, Canada
2019 - Prize Winner in Jewelry Category, Alchemy 5 Juried Exhibition, Enamelist Society, Eugene, Oregon
2019 - Prix d’Excellence, École de Joaillerie de Montréal Gala, Montréal, Canada
2018 - Prix d’Excellence, École de Joaillerie de Montréal Gala, Montréal, Canada

EXHIBITIONS

2021 - Camp: A Spectace of Rings, Co Adorn Art Jewellery Society, La Pai Art Gallery, Ottawa, Canada
2021 - Adornaxis, Remove Viewing Online Exhibition, New York Jewelry Week, New York, USA
2021 - The Earring Show 2021, Craft Council of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
2021 - Earring Galore, Heidi Lowe Gallery, New York, USA
2019 - New Vernacular – A Canadian Jewellery Conversation, MetalAid, New York, USA
2019 - Alchemy 5, Enamelist Society, Eugene, Oregon, United States
2019 - École de Joaillerie de Montréal Gala, Montréal, Canada
2018 - Halstead Challenge, Society of North American Goldsmiths, Portland, USA
2016 - Storytelling in Metal, Florida Society of Goldsmiths, Florida, USA
2016 - Festival Art Gallery, Jewelry Exhibit Port au Prince, Haiti
2015 - Enamel Guild, North East, Under Fire 2015, online exhibition New York, USA
2015 - Expressions Gallery, Jewelry Exhibition, Port au Prince, Haiti
2011 - Enamel Jewelry Exhibition, Chardin Art Gallery, Tbilisi, Georgia
2000 - Kulturvereinigung, Nordliches Burgenland, Neusiedl am See, Austria

SOLO EXHIBITIONS

1999 - UNESCO Ashberg grant awarded by Federal Chancellery, Vienna, Austria. Solo exhibition of contemporary graphic art at the Gallery Jutner

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Cités Nouvelles - l'Ouest-de-l'Île

Une bague de l’artisane arménienne Gayané Avetisyan de DDO en lice pour un prix d’excellence

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