Cultural Overview Of Armenia

The Armenians were involved in literature and many art forms at a very early point in their civilization. Their metalworking and architecture have been traced back to about 1000 BC. The work in gold and bronze was high quality. In the early Christian era, a series of cathedrals were adapted to classical church architecture.

Armenian painters in Cilicia enriched Byzantine and Western formulas with their unique use of colour and inclusion of Oriental themes. This form of painting is considered to have begun with the illustration of religious manuscripts. Today, Armenians are doing well as émigré painters in various countries, for example, the surrealist Arshile Gorky in New York.

Armenian literature and drama often depict struggles against religious and ethnic oppression and the aspirations of Armenians for security and self-expression.