Cafesjian Museum of Modern Art
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The Cafesjian Museum of Art - the youngest of museums in Yerevan - was unveiled in November 2009. The impressive building, designed by the New York David Hotson Architects, was described after the opening as „one of the most ambitious works of contemporary architecture undertaken in any of the former republics of the Soviet Union". The New York Times wrote that it was "a mad work of architectural megalomania and architectural recovery, (...) one of the strangest and most spectacular museum buildings to open in ages." The museum is located in the city centre, in the area of the Soviet-era Cascade, and the core of its permanent exhibition is formed by philanthropist Gerard L. Cafesjian's 5000-strong collection of art. The museum holdings comprises paintings, graphic art and sculptures dating from the second half of the 20th century as well as one of the world's most exhaustive glass collections. The likes of Fernando Botero, Arshile Gorky, Jennifer Bartlett and Andy Warhol are represented at the permanent exhibition; the museum also serves as a busy exhibition venue, hosting quality retrospectives and themed exhibitions.
The museum's impressively extensive and imposing Sculpture Garden, located at the base of the Cascade, houses one of the world's most outstanding collections of monumental sculpture. Its spacious walkways, vast vistas and formal garden areas were specially designed to provide the large-scale masterpieces by the great artists Fernando Botero, Lynn Chadwick, Jaume Plensa and Barry Flanagan with a contemporary environment.
Posted 03/2010