The history of Soviet Armenian photography is almost entirely made up of male names. Because the field was mainly defined by journalistic photo-reportage, professional photography was not considered a desirable or ‘suitable’ occupation for women. Information regarding amateur female photographers is sporadic, and reproductions of photographs by them in the domestic press are even rarer. Which is why the few known photographs by Yeranuhi Kaghtsrikyan are noteworthy from an historiographical perspective.

Her shots published in the magazine ‘Hayastani Ashkhatavoruhi’ (Armenian Woman Worker) depict intimate and quite orthodox scenes of domestic life and childhood (the very low quality of these reproductions does not permit their publication in the database). We have been unable to find any further biographical details about Kaghtsrikyan and it is unknown how consistent and serious was her engagement with the camera.

Vigen Galstyan, 2016