CAFESJIAN CENTER FOR THE ARTS

Behind the Opera House, the Cascade, an improbable Soviet monument consisting of an imposing flight of white steps descending from Hakhtanak Park to the Opera House, has become one of the Mecca of Armenian art since it was acquired by Armenian-born American billionaire and art collector Gerard L. Cafesjian. Tastefully renovated and "vegetalized", the Cascade, at the foot of which stands since November 2003 a "cat", the work of Colombian sculptor Fernando Botero, donated to the city by the Armenian-American benefactor, has since been invested by art galleries and museums. Initially decried, Botero's cat, like the other sculptures that punctuate the flight of 572 steps, became part of the rich statuary of the city, conquered the inhabitants of Yerevan, who were also attracted by the concerts and shows offered to the public on an improvised stage at the foot of the Waterfall. Less controversial, the statue of Jules Bastien Lepage, executed by Rodin and offered by N. Sarkozy to Armenia, stands not far away on the Place de France. The Cascade's inspirer has succeeded in his wager: from this almost unfinished monument inherited from the Soviets, which had been lying fallow for so long that a highly confidential club had established itself at its base in the 1990s, it has become the nucleus of a lively and creative neighbourhood, from which a profusion of ideas and events spring. The Cascade has been rebuilt from the bottom up, with a museum at the top, with a breathtaking view of the city, the Cafesjian Art Centre (CCA), next to a large auditorium, and the Tamanian Park at the base, which was also given a new look in November 2009. Thanks to Cafesjian's patronage, the CCA boasts a collection of some 1,200 pieces of glass sculpture, one of the largest in the world, including those of the Libensky-Brychtova couple, a collection of contemporary paintings and drawings, with Braque, Chagall and Gorky and above all masters of pop art, such as Rosenquist and Warhol, contemporary sculpture, Botero, but also Flannagan, Chadwick, Lalanne and Plensa. One can also see the famous triptych of Khandjian, a masterpiece of Armenian painting. A major Gorky exhibition inaugurated the cycle of temporary exhibitions at the same time as the CCA. In addition to the Khandjian Gallery, in 2016 the CCA inaugurated the Sassountsi Davit Gallery with an exhibition of works by Lebyski Brychtova, galleries usually open only on weekends.