STORIES FROM THE 

MOUNTAINS

It is difficult not to get taken by the roads that lead to Syunik, roads showered by warm rays and cool winds. But it’s especially pleasant if you’re on your way to TUMO Stepanakert to form a team with 16 of Artsakh’s teens in order to fill the empty pages of a browser with the stories of people and events.

​In June 2016, Esquire Russia’s chief editor, Grigor Atanesyan, and Blueprint magazine’s art director, Gina Onegina, came upon Armenia’s windy roads and spent two weeks filled with innovative ideas, digital media, interesting stories and of course, jengyalov bread.

Their 16 students learned how to create those stories, stories that appear on the cover of journals, stories that become memorable,​ ​stories that feel personal, stories that are sharp, stories that the reader will want to share with his inner circle and, why not, the​ ​world. The teens worked in teams, discovered some of Artsakh’s most interesting nooks and crannies, spoke with captivating people and​ ​created a vision of the future.

​The results? Four digital stories using different types of media. The teens created and collected texts, interviews, photos, videos and gifs, all within their mini-editorial teams while using the verstka.io platform. Each team had designers, writers, photographers and managers. All except one.

​Gevorg from Shushi laid out his goal from the very start of the​ ​learning lab. It was very important for him to develop a project about Shushi and to do that alone. Gevork wanted to show the public the city’s past and present and do that through the lens of its culture by showcasing the stories of Shushi’s numerous museums and art houses.

One of the teams, the authors of the “Karabakh: 1,000 years later”  story, combined their realistic expectations with their boldest dreams. They were interested in knowing what the future holds for Artsakh; so they went ahead and created it. They told the story of that future by bringing to light the stories of its citizens, the knowledge that’s burgeoning in Artsakh, the sports and the arts.

One of the groups realized that the people of the country speak for  the country first, so they created “Unknown Artsakh’s Known People”  project. The project’s heroes described some of the things they found  most interesting and unique about Artsakh.

To get a fresh perspective on your beloved environment, the best  option is to interview your guests, and that’s exactly what the  “Artsakh Through the Traveler’s Eyes” group did. They tried to understand all the impressions and emotions tourists have and create an image of Artsakh based on those observations. 

These two summer months in Stepanakert broadened the teens’  understanding of digital media and Grigor and Gina’s perceptions of their homeland. But that’s not all.

If you think that it’s better to see it once than hear about it ten  times, then remember that you still haven’t seen the work by Grigor, Gina and the teens. Those can be seen, and heard, and read, and most  importantly, felt, very soon.