Anahit Hayrapetyan documents Armenian women affected by domestic violence, highlighting stories of abuse as well as women’s experiences after leaving their abusers. She combines her photographs with archival portraits of young girls dressed in their finest attire, juxtaposing the reality of abuse that many women face in their adulthood with the “princess” phases of their youth.
Since completing a World Press Photo seminar with excellence in 2006, Anahit Hayrapetyan has made photojournalism her primary profession. In 2009, she attended the Danish School of Media and Journalism, followed by master classes organized by Noor and Nikon in 2010. She has also taught photojournalism to Armenian university students and hearing-impaired youth. Her photographs appear in national and international media, including the Institute on War and Peace Reporting, Radio Free Europe, Hetq.am, and EurasiaNet.org, where she has worked since 2007. She received the RA Presidential Award, first prize at the Karl Bulla International Photo Contest in Russia, and first prize at the International Festival of Photography PhotoVisa. Her work has been exhibited in France, Georgia, Armenia, Turkey, Uzbekistan, and Russia.