Before relocating to Lisbon, she was working in the UK Branch of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation in London. After graduating with an LLB in Law & German, she completed an MSc in Public Policy at the University College London (UCL), and worked within arts and publishing, as well as doing placements within UK Parliament and law firms in the UK and Germany. Tatevik has also contributed towards international arts and culture publications.

Tatevik has been working towards augmenting the external communications and visibility of the Department, implementing digital content development for the upcoming new website. She is also researching and developing policies for Publication and Translation programmes, based on the priorities of the Five Year Plan. She is currently working on the implementation of the Calouste Gulbenkian Translation Series which will be launched in February 2016.

Q.1 When did you first learn about the Armenian Communities Department?

I was aware of the name Gulbenkian from a young age. I found out more about Gulbenkian through my studies, encountering the infamous Trusts case Re Gulbenkian (1968). Later on through work I became aware of the UK Branch and its charitable initiatives within the arts, including its support for the Liverpool Biennial in 2010. Coincidently, before starting work in the UK Branch, I was living near the Foundation´s office in London. I took an active interest in familiarising myself with the Armenian Communities Department´s work and having read the Five Year Plan, I became interested in future possibilities to work on Armenian related contemporary initiatives, especially publications.

Q.2 How did you feel you could contribute to the Armenian Communities Department?

After reading the Five Year Plan, I was interested in the approach which was being developed and was curious to find out how the plan would be put into practice. Having a strong interest in publishing and communications, I was drawn to the possibility of working towards the modernisation and preservation of the Armenian literary heritage. I also felt that I could contribute towards the development and implementation of a new communications strategy. I think there is still a lack of awareness about the Armenian Communities Department, especially its contribution to initiatives in Armenia and the Diaspora. I also very much agree with the approach we are taking to become more open and transparent in our activities and mission. I think it´s okay to show off a little sometimes, especially if we are working on great collaborative projects.

Q.3 Why did the Department decide it was important to start the Calouste Gulbenkian Translation Series?

Support for publications has always been a priority for the Department. We receive some proposals that seek to publish something in Armenian and request founding from the Foundation. But we are not a publishing house; what we aim to do is support specific aspects of publishing a book. At the moment we are working towards a more strategic, needs-based publication policy instead of ad hoc support. The creation of the Translation Series is a step towards this new approach. We hope that by making classic social science texts available to experts and students in Armenian, for example, we can contribute towards the evolvement and use of the Armenian language, as well as to inform the Armenian public of global debates.

Q.4 What areas of translations will be covered?

The Series will focus on four categories or streams of translations, Foreign Languages into Armenian, and vice versa, and Turkish into Armenian, and vice versa. The choice to focus on 19^th century to 21^st century foreign language texts reinforces our emphasis towards a more modern approach to our funding mission. In addition, this initiative will also provide us an opportunity to engage with translators, highlighting the strengths and weaknesses of this field of profession. High quality translators and training opportunities for young translators will play a significant role in this programme, as well as in our overall priority of promoting and preserving the Armenian language. Another aspect is to make important Armenian texts available in foreign languages, especially from current social debates. I think many Armenians in the Diaspora would welcome this, as well as anyone who is interested in Armenian studies. I personally have enjoyed reading various English translations of key Armenian texts (such as Zabel Yesayan and Shushanik Kurghinian), although, these have been literary texts, which will not be covered under the Translation Series.

Q.5 How will the books be selected?

Our advisory Translation Committee will select the texts in the first instance. It is comprised of eight internationally based Armenian experts from a range of professional backgrounds. We are currently developing our long-list of suggested texts and in consultation with the committee we will have a short list of books for each category, which we will announce in early 2016.

Q.6 In your opinion how will the Calouste Gulbenkian Translation Series impact Armenian academics and students?

I hope the Series contributes towards a culture of debate in an Armenian context and through the online resources that we will share, it could become a great tool to introduce new vocabulary and develop a network of translators and publishers. I also think we can encourage students to pursue social science subjects through this initiative, as there is a tendency to focus on medicine, law or engineering degrees. And it would be great for universities to have access to these crucial translations for teaching and research purposes.

Q.7 What are some of your favorite contemporary Armenian authors?

I usually consult Armenian online sources like Inknagir, Granish, and QueeringYerevan (the former supported by the Foundation) to read up on contemporary writing. I like that those websites have the option of reading a selected amount of the texts in Armenian or English, so I find it useful for me from a linguistic perspective too, because it helps me engage my Armenian language within a context that I am interested in. I also read Asymptote Journal for translated works – not necessarily all contemporary – in Armenian but also in English and German. I´ve recently read The Fleeting City by Hovhannes Tekgyozyan in Armenian and I would quite like to read the English translation for comparison. I am more familiar with contemporary writers of Armenian descent who write in English, and some of the ones I like include Arthur Nersesian,Nanacy Agabian, Diana Arterian, and Anna Aslanyan.

Q.8 Do you think people will respond well to this new initiative?

At the moment we have already received positive feedback from translators who are very keen to collaborate and get involved with this initiative. Through this programme we also aim to develop a strong network of translators, by putting translators and publishing houses in contact with one another, promoting trainings and augmenting the quality and exposure of translators. I am positive that once the series is launched we will also get a positive feedback from our target audiences.

Q.9 Do you believe the Armenian Communities Department can impact in a positive way the lives of a younger generation of Armenians?

Definitely, and it should do so through various streams, one of the more obvious ones is our scholarships programme. However, we should also encourage emerging young voices and projects throughout Armenia and the Diaspora to develop through innovative and collaborative initiatives. Some of the ways that we are reaching out and being more transparent in our activities is through researching and developing our digital and communications strategy. Some of our larger projects do focus on the preservation and digitisation of the Armenian language, for example, through our WikiCamp project, to enhance the presence of Western Armenian on Wikipedia, and the Translation Series will make available a range of literary sources online. We want people to have the necessary tools to foster interactive and significant debates about contemporary topics which are relevant to Armenians. We need to embrace a new audience and to do so we have to generate a more visual and welcoming environment for people to engage with us, I think part of this is also about fostering new partnerships within relatively new Armenian communities, for example, in Spain, Germany and Russia. People need to be able to engage with us and we must be able to interact with the new generation in order to create initiatives that truly interest and benefit their specific needs, while contributing towards the wider enhancement of Armenian culture and language.