In a sense this entire group is a Requiem for Armenia.
The work is based on the Genocide of 1915 when a million-and-a
half Armenians perished at the hands of the Ottoman Turks.
My paternal grandmother, grand uncle, and uncle along
with other relatives were killed. The work entitled "Requiem"
is based on remembering the family home city of Kharpert,
which was then referred to as part of historic Western
Armenia. The other pastels are based on present day Armenia
which is in the East. I was there in 2000 and did some
sketches based on the landscape. The watercolor entitled
"Rock, River, and Tree" is based on a poem by
Maya Angelou which points us always toward HOPE.
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