The Armenian Museum of America opened a major contemporary exhibition in June 2022, presenting 125 works alongside Discovering Takouhi: Portraits of Joan Agajanian Quinn.
The display drew from a collection connected with Quinn and included artists working across several generations of American and international contemporary art.
A collection spanning art and architecture
Artists represented in the 125-work presentation included John Altoon, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Charles Garabedian, Frank Gehry and David Hockney.
The selection brought together painting and other forms of visual practice with figures whose work crossed into architecture and wider cultural production.
Discovering Takouhi added a specifically Armenian dimension through portraits of Joan Agajanian Quinn made by 28 Armenian artists. The exhibition was curated by Gina Grigorian and Natalie Varbedian, while Rachel McCullah Wainwright of the Bakersfield Museum of Art contributed to the wider project.
Contemporary art within an Armenian cultural institution
The Armenian Museum of America holds a large collection devoted to Armenian material culture, including coins, books, textiles, inscribed rugs, ceramics, illuminated manuscripts and religious objects.
Placing a large contemporary collection within that institution expanded the museum’s historical scope. The exhibition connected current artistic networks with a repository primarily known for preserving the material history of the Armenian diaspora.
The opening also reflected the role of personal and family collections in shaping museum exhibitions. Quinn’s relationships with artists and the work of her family helped bring together a group that would not otherwise have appeared in the same Armenian cultural context.
The exhibition remained on view until 30 November 2022, with further public events planned across the summer and autumn.