During the past few years, the Armenian Rugs Society and our community have sadly suffered the loss of several of its beloved members--individuals who, in one way or another, played an active role in the Society.

    Some parts of the community may not be aware of these sad milestones, thus we hope to, herein, share some background on these fine and dedicated individuals.

    One of the pillars of the Armenian Rugs Society, a person who was involved with the Society almost from the beginning, was Dr. Murray L. Eiland, Jr., who passed away recently at the age of seventy-nine. Although he worked professionally as a psychiatrist, Murray had a great love for rugs and textiles.  He admired their beauty and their history, but, as a scientist, he also analyzed their structure and materials, educating himself and his audience as he learned. Throughout his life, he traveled to rug-making areas all over the world, wrote several books on oriental carpets, and became known as the most knowledgeable rug expert in the United States.

    In 1969, Murray and his brother Emmett opened a rug store in Berkeley, California. It was there that Lemyel Amirian, one of the founders of the Armenian Rugs Society, introduced Murray to Armenian carpets and textiles, leading him to become a life-long champion of the work of Armenian weavers. He joined the Armenian Rugs Society and became involved in the first major exhibition held by the organization, Weavers, Merchants and Kings, at the Kimbell Art Museum in Dallas, Texas, in 1984. Working alongside others from the organization and the museum, he selected the rugs to be displayed, edited the catalogue, contributed an important article to the catalogue, and lectured at the opening of the event--all tasks he repeated for the PASSAGES exhibition held in San Francisco in 2002. Until he became ill, he was always willing to participate in the Armenian Rugs Society in any way he could. We were honored to have Murray at our side; without him, the Armenian Rugs Society might not yet have earned the respect for Armenian rugs and textiles that we have seen in the years since the organization was founded.

    Another loss to the organization was the passing of Donna Mae Sommer, MD, wife of John Sommer, MD, at eighty-nine. Donna Mae was a respected pediatrician, having studied (and later taught and practiced) at the University of Chicago, where she met her husband-to-be. In 1955, she was part of a team of surgeons who successfully separated conjoined twins using a new procedure to divide their common liver. In 1966, she and the family moved to Fremont, California, where she and John both joined the Permanente Medical Group.

    Early in the twentieth century, John’s mother had been a missionary and medical worker in eastern Anatolia, where she came into contact with Armenian textiles and carpets; her interest in these art works was passed on to her son. He and Donna Mae traveled the world, studying and collecting carpets and other textiles as well as objects related to their production. John became very involved in the San Francisco Bay Area Rug Society (SFBARS), serving for several years as president of that organization, and later also joined the Armenian Rugs Society, where he was an advisor at the time of the PASSAGES exhibition and during the following years. Until she became ill, Donna Mae was always at his side. We miss her calm presence.
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    We also lost Janet Karleen Hall, who joined the ARS at the time of the PASSAGES exhibition. She became a vital part of the Armenian Rugs Society board, helping with secretarial duties and also with the newsletter, as well as performing any task that was asked of her. She was an active member of the Tibetan Buddhist community in the bay area, even attending the Dalai Lama’s yearly retreats in France. Karleen was a good friend and a gentle, quiet person; her help was invaluable to the ARS. We shall miss her. 

   It is also with great regret that we mark the passing of Ruth Stronach, during September of 2017, in Berkeley, California. Ruth married David Stronach, a good friend and supporter of the Armenian Rugs Society, in 1966, and a world renowned Archaeologist on Iranian, Urartian/Armenian, and Middle Eastern Archaeology. Herself an archaeologist, Ruth accompanied David into the field at Nush-i Jan and Shahr-i Qumis, and studied the pottery from both these sites. 

   The Armenian Rugs Society extends its deepest condolences to the friends and families of all these fine individuals who gave of themselves for the benefit and enlightenment of their communities and fellow men and women.

​    Their good graces shall always be remembered. 

    One of the greatest textile artists, carpet designers, and textile restorers, master weaver, Hagop Kapoudjian, (c. 1870-1946), was also a key figure and one of the founding pillars of Homenetmen.
 
    Homenetmen (Armenian: Հ.Մ.Ը.Մ. pronounced [ˈhɔmɛnetmɛn], an acronym in Armenian for Հայ Մարմնակրթական Ընդհանուր Միութիւն, meaning 'Armenian General Athletic Union' is a pan-Armenian diasporan organization devoted to athletics and scouting. Homenetmen’s credo is "Raise Yourself and Raise Others with You…" (Armenian: Բարձրացի՛ր, Բարձրացո՛ւր, Partsratsir Partsratsour). 
 
    Mr. Kapoudjian was the first, and greatest, master of the Kum Kapi school of silk and metal (gold and silver thread) carpets, and a restoration specialist. His family moved to Constantinople (Istanbul) during the persecution of Armenians under Ottoman rule where he studied Persian rugs and soon after, had his own signature style. 

   After WWI, Kapoudjian moved to Paris where he became renowned for restoring knotted carpets and where he worked on several of Gulbenkian’s rare carpet collections. He continued his weaving and repair work in the French capital, and died there.
 
    Kum Kapi was a village of Armenian population wherein pure silk rugs with extraordinary quality were woven in the 19th century. Although it is a fishing village in the present day, Kum Kapı workshops, near the Great Palace of Ottoman Sultans, produced rugs that rivaled the Hereke Imperial Workshops producing woven rugs of amazing quality.

    During the beginning of the 20th century, two master weavers of Kum Kapı and their workshops were active--Hagop Kapuciyan (Kapoudjian), known colloquially as “Rotund (Fat) Hagop” and Zareh Penyamin, the greatest of the Kum Kapı masters.  
 
    Kapoudjian, coming to Constantinople from Kayseri, a central Anatolian town, established his first looms in Kum Kapı where he initially took 16th century Iranian Carpets and rugs with compartments as models, but innovated the designs by adding distinguished features.
 
   Homenetmen was founded on November 16, 1918, in Constantinople (present-day Istanbul). The idea of a pan-Armenian sports association had been promoted for a number of years by an avid athlete and soccer player, Shavarsh Krissian, who started publishing the Armenian language sports periodical Marmnamarz, in 1911, with the financial support of brothers Levon and Krikor Hagopian and through the encouragement of Hovhannes Hintliyan, and the writer Hagop Sirouni.
 
    On May 1, 1911, the Armenian Olympiad, Navasartian Games, were launched and in 1912, Hintliyan published a pioneering article in Marmnamarz about Robert Baden-Powell and the scouting movement. Soon, thereafter, a great number of Armenian scouting groups were established. In 1913, the third pan-Armenian Olympiad was held, presided by Komitas, and for the first time a number of Armenian scouts also took part. Armenian sporting activities eventually halted due to the onset of World War I and the demise of Shavarsh Krissian as a victim of the Armenian Genocide.
 
   On November 16, 1918, a formative constituent assembly was held in Constantinople (Istanbul) to launch the "Armenian General Athletic Union and Scouts" by a collective of 7 prominent members--Krikor Hagopian, Levon Hagopian, Dikran Koyian, Carlo Shahinian, Haig Jizmejian, Vahram Papazian, and Jirayr Korasanjian, with the active support of writer Hagop Sirouni.
 
    The pan-Armenian association was recognized as the sole Armenian athletic union on December 16, 1918 with the formation of the first Homenetmen Executive Committee. Four Homenetmen chapters were soon opened in various Constantinople neighborhoods. Vahan Cheraz founded the scouting chapter of the association.
 
    On July 20, 1920, the founding members of Homenetmen were officially invited to the independent Republic of Armenia to share their expertise regarding athleticism and scouting with the Republic's government. The Homenetmen Executive Committee sent Vahan Cheraz, Dikran Khoyan, and Onig Yazmajian to the meeting. Although initially successful in their efforts to spread Homenetmen’s athletic and scouting movement within Armenia, Homenetmen later was banned from Armenia after the Bolshevik takeover of the Free Republic of Armenia and the forced creation of the Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic in 1921.
 
    In 1922, the Homenetmen chapters in Constantinople were also forced to close their doors under Kemalist Turkish persecution, with the organization's leaders being forced into dispersion throughout the world.
 
     Homenetmen, at 100 years, has survived and grown exponentially around the globe and in Armenia, becoming one of the largest and most resilient Armenian organizations in the world. It has consistently produced generations of citizenry of high character, promoting the fine tenets of athleticism, scouting, and activism, Raising Themselves and Raising Others… 

          As part of its new Community Outreach Program, the Armenian Rugs Society is proud to announce a variety of internship opportunities for college and university students, as well as others interested in public service within a vibrant and growing non-profit environment.
 
     The Armenian Rugs Society has been dedicated to the identification, preservation, documentation, and dissemination of knowledge pertaining to the cultural contributions made by Armenian weavers and craftspeople to the rich and vibrant history of textile arts, since its founding as a non-profit in Washington D.C., in 1980.
 
      And, to this end, the Armenian Rugs Society, has sponsored and participated in countless exhibits, workshops, symposia, and lectures, both nationally and internationally, (most recently the Smithsonian Institute’s Folklife Festival) within public and private spaces, including universities and colleges, art galleries and museums, for the general public and collectors.
 
        Those interested in connecting with a passionate global community, learning about Armenian culture, the textile arts, exhibition and symposium organizing, curating, and event planning, as well as a slew of other activities and projects, are urged to apply. 

      All interns will receive community service and volunteer experience with commensurate accreditation. Some positions may become paid part-time or full-time opportunities in due course.

        Please visit our website at armeniarugssociety.org to inquire and/or apply via our site’s CONTACT page or via our e-mail, info@armenianrugssociety.org, with the hashtag #internship in the comment section or subject line. 
 
     We look forward to collaborating with you and a growing community of scholars, artists, collectors, and organizations passionate about the fascinating world of Armenian textile arts.
 
 
 
                                                                     Sincerely and with Warm Regards,
 
                                                                                                                                                                                                                      Hratch Kozibeyokian
                                                                          President, Board of Directors
                                                           The Armenian Rugs Society

    A whole new era for Armenia and Armenian Culture has clearly begun and it doesn’t look like it’s slowing down anytime soon. And, that includes the new energy and sense of discovery that is sweeping over the Armenian woven and textile arts world...
 
    From Yerevan to Los Angeles and from Shushi to San Francisco artisans, academics, aficionados, and arts activists of all stripes and hues are flocking to the creation and appreciation of Armenian textile arts with renewed interest, passion, and curiosity.
 
    The Armenian Rugs Society finds itself--very happily--still, at the forefront of this cultural renewal and activism, paving the way for a new generation of Armenian artisans and scholars to take their mantle into the future.
 
    And, in this regard, the Society continues to offer support to museums, academic institutions, and arts organizations in Armenia, Europe, and the US, by sponsoring exhibitions, workshops, symposia, and lectures, both in public and private venues, including this year’s monumental Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington D.C.
 
    The Society not only nurtures the discovery and cultivation of Armenian woven culture among academics and enthusiasts alike, but continues supporting Armenian woven arts and its artisans world-wide through a number of programs including its Adopt-a-Loom initiative, that aim to engender support for indigenous traditions by building textile arts communities in Armenia and around the world. 
 
    However, the Society has never worked alone and cannot work without your support, especially now.
 
    The Armenian Rugs Society is a non-profit organization founded in Washington D.C., in 1980, and, as such, depends on the donations of its members and generous donors in order to continue its dedicated mission to the identification, preservation, documentation, and dissemination of the cultural contributions made by Armenian weavers and craftspeople to the rich and vibrant history of global textile arts.

   Moreover, the Armenian Rugs Society needs your help to continue fostering a climate of inquiry, curiosity, and awareness among the next generation and society at large, regarding the world of Armenian woven arts, while preserving and nurturing a growing global awareness of Armenian rugs and sacred symbolism.

    Anyone sharing an interest in the amazing world of Armenian woven arts traditions and their myriad manifestations, both ancient and modern, is cordially invited to be a part of the Armenian Rugs Society. Individual annual memberships are $50.00 (US), annual family memberships (two adults sharing the same address) are $75.00 (US), and corporate annual memberships begin at $150.00 (US). Each new member will receive a letter of acknowledgment, an Armenian Rugs Society membership card, timely email receipt of our Newsletters, and access to Society activities, as well as a surprise gift from the Armenian Rugs Society.
 
    The Armenian Rugs Society seeks to provide its membership, and the community at large, with the most current, accurate, and incisive, information and findings regarding a global cultural tradition rich in its past and vibrant in its present growth. Armenian Rugs Society projects and initiatives continue to help in creating new scholarly standards and opening-up new areas of study both within the Armenian woven arts arena and historical scholarship, in general.

   Be a vibrant part of this noble effort and join with us to bring both new academic verve and healing creativity through this ancient art form to a modern world in dire need of its curative energy...

    Your membership dues and generous donations go a long way in helping to support all our activities...

   Please visit our website at armenianrugssociety.org  and become a member via our easy to use MEMBERSHIP or CONTACT pages, or via our e-mail, info@armenianrugssociety.org, with the hashtag #membership in the comment section or subject line.
 
    Donations and membership fees may be made via check or money order to THE ARMENIAN RUGS SOCIETY P.O Box 21104 GLENDALE, CA 91201 or via our Pay Pal account links conveniently located on our MEMBERSHIP page, as well as throughout the site via our DONATE buttons.
 
    We look forward to collaborating with you and a growing community of scholars, artists, collectors, and organizations passionate about the fascinating world of Armenian textile arts.
 
 
 
                                                                          Sincerely and with Warm Regards,
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Hratch Kozibeyokian
                                                                                President, Board of Directors
                                                                                The Armenian Rugs Society