Varazdat Harutyunyan practised at a period when the terms of architecture itself were under argument.
The record lists Varazdat Harutyunyan as Armenian architect (1909-2008).
Varazdat Harutyunyan was born at Van in 1909. His recorded nationality is Ottoman Empire. He trained at National Polytechnic University of Armenia.
Modernism rejected ornament and historical style, arguing that a building should express its structure and its function - a claim contested ever since.
He is recorded as architect, architectural historian and architectural theoretician.
Buildings outlast their architects and usually their purposes, which is what makes the discipline unforgiving.
Recognition followed: Medal "For the Victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945", Order of the Badge of Honour, Medal "For Labour Valour" and Medal "For the Defence of the Caucasus".
That the work was built in Ottoman Empire shaped it: climate, materials, planning law and who holds the budget all decide what can actually be built.
Varazdat Harutyunyan died in 2008, aged 99. The buildings remain, still in use by people who never knew the name - which is the particular afterlife architecture offers.
Achievements
- Medal "For the Victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945"
- Order of the Badge of Honour
- Medal "For Labour Valour"
- Trained at National Polytechnic University of Armenia
