Kardash Onnig

Born in Zahleh, Lebanon, in 1941, Kardash Onnig escaped the Armenian fratricide of 1958, which was being waged in the streets of Beirut, by immigrating to New York. After becoming a driving force in the emerging field of multimedia in the 1960s, he left the corporate world and eventually settled down in upstate New York, where he built his home and studio. For the past 50 years, Kardash has dedicated himself to creative endeavors which seek to establish cultural bridges and foster dialogue, mutual understanding, and collaboration, within a larger context of universal interconnectedness. As a sculptor, performance artist, toy-maker, teacher, author, and political activist, Kardash has produced a vast body of work that has garnered international acclaim and often provoked backlash, not least from the Armenian community, for his no-holds-barred candor.