Curated by
Tamar Hovsepian

Exhibition Dates:
August 7 – September 5, 2026

Opening Reception:
August 7, 2026, 18:30

The National Gallery of Armenia, in collaboration with Atamian Hovsepian Curatorial Practice (AHCP), presents Delicate Matter, an exhibition of recent works by Karen Ohanyan, curated by Tamar Hovsepian. The exhibition is organized within the framework of Prospectations, the National Gallery of Armenia's programme highlighting contemporary Armenian art. The works are co-commissioned by Sharjah Art Foundation and Atamian Hovsepian Curatorial Practice. Following their presentation in Armenia, the works will be exhibited as part of Sharjah Biennial 17: What Remains, sits restive, on view in Sharjah, UAE, from 21 January to 17 June 2027.

Delicate Matter unfolds through the multiple meanings of the word matter. It refers to the delicate matters we often avoid naming—questions of power, masculinity, violence, and vulnerability—and to matter as substance, the material from which bodies, paintings, memories, and systems of power are formed. The work proposes that what seems solid or enduring often rests upon profound delicacy. Rather than presenting vulnerability as the opposite of strength, these works suggest that fragility may be the very condition from which resilience and human connection take shape.