The Artist of Non-Art

Author: Sona Simonyan

11.06.17

Cardboard combat machinery is not easy to come by in Yerevan, as in most capitals. It is no surprise then that Artak Gevorgyan and his foot-powered green tank have received a fair share of attention in December 2015, as a bright emerald object was spotted around the Armenian capital’s centres of power. Once by the National Security Service (NSS) he burnt it to ashes - and got handcuffed.

The 25-year-old artist was not that fussed about it as he and his fellow artists at the street art collective Hakakarvac (Counterattack) have been using art to stage protests and raise awareness on political issues - falling under the authorities’ spotlight has come as part of the package.

The green walking tanks brought Gevorgyan into the limelight, but the activities of the Yerevan-born artist embraces a much larger range of ventures as he believes that anything around us can become a creative tool.

A free spirit, Gevorgyan believes that anything around us can be a creative tool and he’s determined to use them all - be them stickers or electronic music. Yet, he does not consider himself an artist.