Hay Zinvor

“THE EYES OF WAR”

On the first day of the war, Davit began his documentary on the 44-day war with a photo of a children’s room in Stepanakert that had been shelled and destroyed.

Davit Ghahramanyan was born and raised in Stepanakert. He attended a theatrical studio at the Vahram Papazyan State Drama Theater in Stepanakert, then worked as an actor in the same theater. And since 2014 he has been engaged in photography.

– At the beginning of the war, as a photographer for the Artsakh Information Headquarters, I was assigned to photograph the devastation of the Stepanakert region. But then I realized that I had to take pictures of the soldiers, that’s why I was going to the front line. The chances of dying were high, but I had overcome the fear in myself, well aware of the importance of my mission.

The smile of the soldiers on the front line gave Davit strength. The picture was different in Stepanakert. It took a lot of strength and will to endure what happened to the civilians …

From Stepanakert to Martuni region, then Karintak և Shushi. The photos show both the soldiers fighting on the front line and the residents behind them in the devastation. The photo of the smiling child reflects the contrast: “Life against death”. The child in the photo did not leave Artsakh during the whole war. Each photo of Davit is a story, and today the photographer presents to the public his 101 photos-stories.

– When taking photos, I already imagined what kind of shots should be. “I mostly choose photos that show human destinies,” says Davit.

The idea of organizing an exhibition was born during the war.

– I thought it would be a victory about the heroes who fought for victory. After the brutal end of the war, I did not give up the idea of an exhibition, I decided that my collection of photos should present to the world what really happened in Artsakh, how the Armenian soldiers and officers fought against the background of all that. Many of the viewers of the photos mentioned that it seems as if they are not looking at us, but looking at us from the photos, talking to us. And since the subject of all the photos shown is war, so after thinking for a long time we decided to present them under the title “Eyes of War”.

The exhibition was initiated by the Artsakh office of the Hamazkayin Armenian Educational and Cultural Union. It was with the representative of that office, Hermine Avagyan, that Davit chose the title of the exhibition.

In the presented photos there is pain, longing, waiting. He is the belief in victory in the smiling photos of the artillerymen. The photo of one of them, Kolya Nikoghosyan, is on the poster of the exhibition, who died during the war.

– It was just that in the eyes of Kolya, the smiling artilleryman, there was a lot of light even in those dark and nightmarish days. And for me, in his eyes, in his image, are all the soldiers, – says the photographer-documentary.

One of the smiling artillerymen, Arthur Davtyan from Shushi, was present at the exhibition. The senior sergeant celebrated his 20th birthday. Throughout the ceremony, undisguised excitement was imprinted on his face. Arthur lost his fighting friends: Homeland.

It is impossible not to look with a smile at the photo of little Monte, who was born on the first day of the war, under shelling, in the maternity hospital of the Artsakh Maternal and Child Health Care Center.

During the ceremony, Davit was waiting for his wife from Stepanakert with a heartbeat.

– My first child will be born. She is a girl. I will call him Arpi. Arpins will be born in Artsakh, life will always continue there …

And during the ceremony they announced that Arpi was born …