SPECIAL REPORTS

Byzantine Art Historian Dr. Anestis Vasilakeris comments on the timeless messages carried to the present by the narratives depicted in the mosaics and frescoes of the church of Chora Monastery in Istanbul.

In these forsaken days of the Corona Virus, Art in its physical sense of exhibitions, events, screenings, performances, publications and so forth, has become almost a rarity. Yes, a great number of artists have been active by channeling their creative side through the internet but the essential live interaction between the artist and the audience is almost none. Every one is in the same situation of isolation and quarantine. We at Agos felt that there is a common ground here regarding the artistic well-being and day-to-day creative life of artists in general during this long and absurd period staged by a deadly virus. So, we asked Armenian artists living in many different countries how isolation has effected their creative process, focus and inspiration regarding their art…and how do they envision the future of their art and creativity once the quarantine days come to an end? We asked them to write back for our readers to know their thoughts and reflections. Berge Arabian

At the end of the war, when the Ottoman Empire was defeated and the Ittihadist leaders escaped to Germany, Siruni came out of his hiding, and with few surviving intellectuals tried to re-establish a community that was mortally wounded.

In both the United States and Turkey, the current governments and the social systems they protect discriminate against whole parts of the population. Their victims may be the socially disadvantaged or distinct ethnic and religious peoples. Imagine a country where the poor and members of ethnic minorities die more often from the coronavirus than the well-to-do and those favored by the state.

The state of emergency declared after the coup attempt on July 15 resulted in a purge in universities that has never been seen before in Turkey's recent history. The emergency decrees have been used for dismissing both experienced academics who carried out many researches in universities and young academics whose careers had just begun. However, despite everything that happened, some academics hold on to their profession, which they define as “reason for being”. In this regard, Kocaeli Solidarity Academy is a precursor and guiding initiative. Having completed its first term of “alternative education”, it has also the purpose of establishing an open and free school of life for people with a new two-tear program.

Asia and Africa collection of British Library in London offers books that tell a story of Kurdish language and culture that is not widely known. More than hundred works in Kurdish, especially children's books, that were published in Soviet Armenia in Cyrillic, Armenian and Latin alphabets have come to light again thanks to cataloging efforts of Michael Erdman, library's curator of Turkish and Turkic languages.

Historian Taner Akçam reveals another document of critical importance. In the telegram sent by III. Army Commander Mahmut Kamil Paşa to the regions from where Armenians had been deported, it was stated that the houses of the ones who hide Armenians will be burned.

Historian Taner Akçam decpihred the telegram by executive of Teşikilat-ı Mahsusa (Secret Organization) and Commitee of Union and Progress Bahaettin Şakir dated July 4, 1915. The telegram is about coordination of deportation and annihilation of Armenians. The letterhead on the telegram proves that it is indeed original.