max moya's works tell a fantastical story of mount ararat based on the armenian genocide

lima-based architect and artist max moya has created a series of works based on the shaping of the armenian-turkish border and the 1915 armenian genocide. the works tell an imaginary story of the mount ararat, the volcanic massif currently located in extreme eastern turkey, overlooking the meeting point of the armenian, turkish and iranian borders.

traditionally referred to as the resting place of noah’s ark, mount ararat has played a central role in the shaping of armenian identity and represents one of the symbols of the state. with his works, max moya reflects on the point in time when armenians were forced away from the land around the mountain during the 1915 genocide, and their official separation from ararat in 1920, when the turkish claim to the area was legitimized with the treaty of moscow. since 1993, the border between turkey and armenia remains completely shut.

through drawings and sculptural objects, moya tells a fantastical story based on the view of mount ararat from yerevan, the capital of armenia, where on some days and due to a climatic effect, the mountain appears to be floating on clouds. the story begins with the clouds, ‘that need no passport to move across borders, and speak to the mountain about the suffering of the armenians.’  it then continues with the mountain, which ‘longs for its people and cries silently.’ the clouds, saddened too, offer to carry mount ararat into the sky and take it floating across the border to armenia. ‘the mountain breaks in half, and hovers across to its people,’ – the shape of which can be seen in the sculptural works and drawings – and ‘there it lands softly on armenian ground.’ the story ends with the armenians, gathered around the newly arrived mountain which reveals a cavity in its core, signifying the space where all armenian men, women and children disappeared in 1915 – ‘they had not died, they were merely waiting.’

monumento armenio – serie la montaña flotante. punta seca sobre acrílico, 29cm x 41.5cm. 2017

monumento armenio ii – serie la montaña flotante. punta seca sobre acrílico, 29cm x 41.5cm. 2017

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edited by: sofia lekka angelopoulou | designboom