Aram Nikolyan: In our traditional clothing, the wedding dress was not white, it was red
For stylist Aram Nikolyan, creating in difficult times is not easy… Aram notes that the essence of the Nikolyan brand is Armenianness. In his opinion, every stylist should also be a psychologist to some extent in order to understand how to present a person and his temperament.
– Do phenomena and events have colors for you, and what color do you associate Armenia with?
– Living for centuries and having a rich culture, we cannot be colorless․ We are very colorful, luxurious; our cultural treasures include all colors. So, I think it would be a bit wrong to associate them with one color.
– Aram, your last show truly received a great response. On the internet, the character of Nazeni Hovhannisyan was discussed the most. Do you connect that to the actress’s name or the unique presentation of the character?
– Nazeni is always at the center of discussions, but in this case, I wouldn’t like to fully connect it with Nazeni’s name. The idea where Nazeni was dressed in a cleric’s outfit and embodied faith was correctly presented.
– You often mention that the Armenian woman is your source of inspiration when creating your collections.
– The idea of a strong Armenian woman is the second important component of my brand. The first one is Armenian culture. I often say in my interviews that I have never seen a woman from any other nation who can go through such difficulties—losing family, children, and the most valuable things for her—yet rise again in a completely foreign place and become a bearer of her culture. When I was working on the “Urfa” collection, I was researching the lives of Armenian women who, during the time of the Genocide, found themselves in France and Italy and tried to change something with the knowledge they had.
– What is the Nikoyan brand about?
– The Nikoyan brand is about Armenian identity. In the fashion world today, it has almost become impossible to show something new. We have a multi-layered culture, and it would be wrong not to touch on that culture and show it to the world. Unfortunately, God hasn’t given us natural resources like oil, gas, or gold mines, but He has given us a history rich in culture and diversity. I have always been inspired by my culture and placed it at the core of many of my works.
– Is the theme of war presented in famous fashion shows, or do they avoid such topics?
– Fashion has always been a platform where wars and other issues are addressed. My colleagues held a fashion show at Milan Fashion Week, dedicated to what was happening in Artsakh during the war.
Our art, in general, is visual, and through it, it is very easy to raise various issues. There was once an idea to hold a show about the Armenian Genocide, but at that time, it was not implemented. My inspiration at the time was Komitas. When you study his life, you understand what a positive person he was.
– In an interview with Anna Mayilyan we talked about weddings. We came to the conclusion that it would be wonderful if Armenian brides wore wedding dresses that would have folk costume elements in them. Have you thought about creating such a collection?
– In fact, this trend exists now, and we see brides at many weddings wearing dresses with elements of traditional Armenian clothing. Sirusho has such a direction, which focuses on restoring wedding dresses. There was an idea to collaborate with Sirusho on something like this, but unfortunately, it didn’t come to life. I believe I will still turn to this, as I have been interested in and studied the concept of the Armenian bride. I must mention that in our traditional clothing, the wedding dress was not white, it was red—over time, it became white.
Interviewed by Lena Gevorgyan
