The memories of the famous Soviet photographer are dense, he has so much to say, that sometimes his ideas scatter, reveal new details, then come back, continue with the idea left halfway. However, he does not hide it. “Talking is hard,” he says, “I more take photos, than talk.”
Photos are immortalized moments. It may seem that for being a photographer it is enough to show beautiful images, sometimes evoke emotions and admiration and to consider mission accomplished. However, when looking at a photo from the distance of decades, it becomes clear that the value of the image is not the artistic enjoyment, but the ability to transfer the moment and the feeling, which was and has passed, but its impact and trace are still felt today.
A few days ago Gagik Harutyunyan’s exhibition “The Shadows of Time” opened in the Artists’ Union of Armenia. It made such a big commotion among the visitors, that a meeting with Gagik Harutyunyan was organized.
The memories of the famous Soviet photographer are dense, he has so much to say, that sometimes his ideas scatter, reveal new details, then come back, continue with the idea left halfway. However, he does not hide it. “Talking is hard,” he says, “I more take photos, than talk.”
Like almost all the photographers, Gagik Harutyunyan started snapping photos the moment he got his first photo camera. As everyone, in the beginning he was shooting “kitties and puppies”, then his interest grew and he started looking for new subjects.
He remembers that for dedicating himself to photography he was forced to do jobs he did not love, but doesn’t regret it. Photography has become his lifelong companion thanks to all of it.
For years, he has been a correspondent for “Garun”, has worked in AOKS, and now regrets that during his trips abroad he did not have enough time to take photos of human stories and subjects, as he always was with the delegations and his main job was to take their photos. This is the reason he hasn’t brought such photos from Denmark, France and even Africa, which would represent those countries in their full palette.
Gagik Harutyunyan admits that he bears a special photography census inside. “Today people are looking for shock and tears in photos, but in reality you can elicit tears from people without showing dead bodies or war. In my photos I show my states and moods.”
The exhibition “The Shadows of Time” will be open until September 10.
