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Voice of America Turns Cameras on
Armenian Anthropologist
By Sossi Essajanian
 QUEENS,
New York—On January 18, all barriers were broken between New
York and Yerevan, when the Voice of America (VOA) Armenia
Service visited the Anthropology Museum of the People of New
York and the Armenian Cultural Educational Resource Center
in Kissena Hall at Queens College.
Funded by the U.S. government, VOA is an international
broadcasting service that has been on the air since 1942.
The program interviewed the museum’s director/curator and
co-founder Margaret C. Tellalian-Kyrkostas and toured the
many parts of the facility. Tellalian-Kyrkostas explained
the history of the museum, and then gave a tour of its
various sections. One of the first panels titled “Human Face
of Anthropology,” presents the four sub-disciplines of
anthropology: archeology, linguistic, social/cultural, and
biological.
During the tour for the program, Tellalian-Kyrkostas pointed
out the museum’s Armenian portion, which includes topics
such famous Armenian-Americans, the Armenian language, and a
display titled “Armenia: Memories from My Home.” Portions of
the Armenian section have been displayed at event such as
the April 24, 2005 event in Times Square, commemorating the
90th anniversary of the Genocide.
“I hope that by seeing this interview, people will become
interested in the museum and come to visit and contribute to
its growth,” said Tellalian-Kyrkostas. “The next generation
can learn about the history of the Armenians and should be
aware of its cultural heritage. Through cross cultural
understanding, we can do some healing.”
During the tour, VOA also interviewed others involved in the
museum’s success, including Board of Trustee members Flora
Keshisian and Grace Kechian.
She also explained that the museum is student-curated and
its permanent collection holds ancient Greek artifacts and
fossils illustrating human evolutionary development.
Margaret Mead and Kyrkostas founded the museum in 1977 to
promote cross-cultural understanding among the city’s many
cultural groups. Today, the museum offers events on the
Queens College campus and at various off-campus sites, such
as panel discussions, photography exhibits, and art shows.
The museum is located on the Mezzanine floor at 64-19
Kissena Boulevard, Flushing, N.Y., and is open on Wednesdays
and Thursdays from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. and by appointment.
For more information, call (718) 428-5650. |
