Armenia’s Ancient and Global Influence on Art

On March 26, the fourth annual Grace and Paul Shahinian Armenian Christian Art and Culture Lecture Series, was hosted by The Catholic University of America. The 2026 lecture, “Armenian Art and the World,” featured Helen C. Evans, Ph.D., the Mary and Michael Jaharis Curator for Byzantine Art Emerita at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, as the keynote speaker.

Father Stefanos Alexopoulos, director of the University’s Institute for the Study of Eastern Christianity, welcomed the audience.

“Today, we are celebrating the fourth lecture in the Grace and Paul Shahinian Armenian Christian Art and Culture Lecture Series, generously supported by Dean Shahinian, in memory of his parents,” said Father Stefanos.

In their honor, the lecture series is designed to support, explore, and cultivate the study of Armenian Christian art and culture by sharing these traditions with a wider audience.  The Shahinians’ commitment to the local Armenian community and churches was reflected in the full audience.

“Tonight’s talk on Armenian art and culture occurs in the context of turbulent times, with nations at war in the Middle East,” said William Roth, senior associate vice president for advancement at Catholic University. “It is in times like these that we desperately need more opportunities that promote mutual understanding, advance interfaith dialogue, and remind us that globalization can be essential to promote peace. We are grateful to Dean for enabling this event and these needed intercultural dialogues.”
For nearly 140 years, Catholic University has served as an important and rare U.S.-based center for the study of the ancient Armenian language and its literature, aligning with the lecture series’ goals.

The Armenian Ambassador to the United States, Narek Mkrtchyan, provided remarks. As Ambassador Mkrtchyan studied to be a historian, received his Ph.D. in world history from Yerevan State University, and previously received a guided tour at The Met from Evans, he was an apt and prestigious choice to speak at the lecture. Since ancient times, he said, art and culture have been an inseparable part of Armenian identity. He also discussed Armenia’s key role in preserving ancient art from other countries.

Ordinary Professor of Church History Emerita Robin Darling Young introduced Evans. Recounting her visit to see Armenia!, The Met exhibit curated by Evans, she said:

“The brilliance of Armenian art and culture was assembled in the Metropolitan, and those who walked the length of the exhibit could never forget what was assembled there: the works of an Armenia alive in its homeland and in its diaspora, from the medieval monasteries, the cities and countryside, from its easternmost to its westernmost extent.”

Darling Young was joined onstage by Bishop Daniel Findikyan, a research professor in the School of Theology and Religious Studies. In an engaging exchange, the bishop stepped in to speak the Armenian parts of her introduction.

Evans’ lecture, which ranged from domed churches to illuminated manuscripts, focused on how Armenian art is central to Armenian identity and creates a global impact on art and culture that spans centuries. In her wide-ranging talk, she explored Armenia’s distinctive Christian art, from cubism in church architecture to reliquaries to the influence of Armenia’s printed Bibles. Evans emphasized how Armenia’s roots are reflected in the earliest Christian art traditions and influenced the region and the broader landscape of Christian art and culture.

The program concluded with a blessing by Bishop Findikyan. Afterward, guests sampled an array of Armenian delicacies, from beef and vegan specialties to honey cakes and baklava.

Watch the presentation

Enjoy rewatching the lecture and seeing the beauty of Armenian art and culture come to life.