Broadening Access to Armenian Heritage through Engagement and Resilience
Armenian Institute secures National Lottery support to explore and share Armenian heritage
The Armenian Institute is very pleased to announce it has been awarded a generous grant of £233,600 by the National Lottery Heritage Fund. The grant begins in March 2020 and will run for two and a half years. “Broadening Access to Armenian Heritage Through Engagement and Resilience” enables a new expanded staff structure and supports a range of activities aimed at expanding participation and audiences. Thanks to National Lottery players, the project includes preservation work on its valuable library and archives as well as new interactive activities designed to attract both Armenian and non-Armenian users and participants. “Culture Hub” will host events including regular “Open Mic” sessions, Diaspora Forum where contemporary issues are discussed, book clubs, film series and podcast-creating workshops. The NLHF grant comes as the Armenian Institute prepares to move from its current home in Kensington to new premises on Saffron Hill, EC1.
Dr. Becky Jinks, historian and Chair of the Board of Trustees says “We’re delighted to receive this support from The National Lottery Heritage Fund. The grant will allow us to grow the Armenian Institute into a vibrant hub of heritage and culture, safeguarding our valuable Library and Archive collections and offering a rich programme of events which we hope will appeal to new audiences as well as old!”
“This generous grant is a real game-changer for us,” comments co-founder and interim Director, Dr. Susan Pattie. “We are truly grateful to the National Lottery players and to The National Lottery Heritage Fund for this opportunity to grow both internally as an institution and outwards, engaging with new people and communities.”
Activities and Events
The funding will enable Armenians, who have arrived in the UK in different waves of migration, to create a space where community diversity is explored and celebrated. The Armenian Institute programmes will provide a safe space for understanding difference and learning about shared heritage. This is a step towards community-building but also towards reaching beyond the ethnic community to share ideas with others with whom Armenians share experiences, history and space. Four main themes emerge from AI’s past work that will become a framework for this project’s programming.
Within these themes, a number of workshops and masterclasses will give opportunities to learn how to make “Artists’ Books”, graphic novels, podcasts, and perform storytelling. Young people will be encouraged to learn skills of programme management, fund-raising, researching topics, writing and public speaking.
If you would like to volunteer to be an active part of our activities, please download and fill in the registration form or contact us directly
Main themes of the Project
Exploring Gender: understanding identities, histories, and heritage
Through lectures, film showings and panel discussions on Armenian feminism and LGBT+ identities, we will explore shifting gender histories and identities in Armenian culture over time. In so doing we want to open a space for subjects that are often overlooked in Armenian and other minority heritages.
Migration, Displacement and Refugees
Panel discussions, film showings, and a Refugee Stories graphic nonfiction workshop will explore Armenians’ and others’ historic experiences of migration, displacement, and being refugees. In particular we want to focus on the varying experiences of Armenians of different backgrounds (for example, those who arrived in the UK from Cyprus, Lebanon, Iran, Soviet Armenia, or Syria), and to connect these experiences with those of other groups.
Neighbours, Historic and Present
One of our key goals is to explore the connections Armenians have had with their ‘historic and present neighbours’, whether Kurds, Turks, Jews, Greeks, Russians, and indeed British culture here in the UK. Thus, we want to build our Culture Hub as an inclusive space where we can explore shared histories, difference, diversity, and interconnections, through workshops, panel discussions, film showings, and our annual commemoration of Hrant Dink. Our Library also includes research resources (books and journals) about our historic neighbours .
Literary Heritage
Inspired by the richness of our Library and Archive collections, we want to explore influences of Armenian literature, language, and writing on Armenian identity and heritage today. Activities such as Book Clubs, Open Mic Poetry and Music Nights, podcasts, and workshops on Artists’ Books and Armenian puppet theatre, will help us record and share these experiences.
Preserving and Accessing The Library And Archives
Inspired by the richness of our Library and Archive collections, we want to explore influences of Armenian literature, language, and writing on Armenian identity and heritage today. Activities such as Book Clubs, Open Mic Poetry and Music Nights, podcasts, and workshops on Artists’ Books and Armenian puppet theatre, will help us record and share these experiences.
Our Library and Archives collections are at the heart of AI. The 8,000-volume Library collection includes works in English, Armenian, and other languages, with some rare items dating from the 17th century. The holdings include information about historical, modern and contemporary events and a wealth of literature and poetry, folklore and art-related works. They are a valuable resource for the community and for researchers and give us a wonderfully rich understanding of Armenian heritage and shared histories. There are eight archival collections:
Papers of Professor Charles Dowsett: research notes, draft articles, newspaper cuttings, and correspondence. Particularly significant are his materials relating to Armenian folklore and poetry.
Papers of George Kurkjian: correspondence, papers, photographs dated c.1950-2000. Particularly significant are the photographs of cultural and ecclesiastic life in Soviet Armenia.
Papers of David Miller, British Ambassador to Armenia (1995-1997): correspondence and research papers. Particularly significant are papers relating to the Armenian genocide, including correspondence with Jack Straw and Geoffrey Robinson QC.
Papers of the British historian Christopher J. Walker: correspondence, research notes, articles, newspaper cuttings and his own publications. Particularly significant was his work on the Minority Rights Group report on Armenia (1975).
Papers of translator Mischa Kudian: many works of Armenian poetry, correspondence, drafts, and proofs.
Papers of British-Armenian historian Joan George: newspaper cuttings, correspondence, drafts, and offprints of her research on the Armenian communities of London and Manchester.
The London Armenian Community collection: pamphlets, notes of cultural events, and other ephemera relating to the cultural activities of the London Armenian community (c.1970-present).
Archives of the Armenian Institute itself: organisational reports, records of meetings, correspondence, records of events, and copies of publications.
Together, these archives speak to Armenian history and experience in the UK and across the globe; the diversity of materials (photographs, cuttings, pamphlets, poetry) make them an exceptionally rich resource.
If you are interested in volunteering for the archiving project, please download and fill in the registration form or contact us directly
End of Project Report
From 2019-2022 we were lucky enough to be part-funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund. Despite the challenges of the pandemic, we were able to successfully move to a new home, hold over 120 events, gain thousands of new followers, and achieve our goals. Watch our short video below for a recap of all our achievements!
Whether you’re a long-standing member or have only just found us, thank you for your support and participation: you make AI what it is. Thank you especially to NLHF and all the Lottery players out there. We’re looking forward to our next chapter!
About Armenian Institute
The Armenian Institute is the primary hub for Armenian heritage and culture in the UK. It aims to bring that heritage to life through innovative workshops, lectures, exhibits and educational resources. Armenian language classes are taught and the Library and Archives are open to researchers, writers and artists seeking information, advice and context for their work. As a diasporan people, the importance of diversity being explored, recognised and appreciated is the basic premise of AI’s far-ranging work.
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About The National Lottery Heritage Fund
Using money raised by the National Lottery, we Inspire, lead and resource the UK’s heritage to create positive and lasting change for people and communities, now and in the future. www.heritagefund.org.uk.
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