#kondgallery is a conceptual branding and urban activation project aimed at reshaping the marginal image of Kond — one of Yerevan’s oldest historical districts — by transforming it into an open-air gallery for urban artists. Located in the very center of the city, on top of a hill and surrounded by modern Yerevan, Kond exists as a visible yet overlooked layer of the capital. For years, it was associated with neglect, uncertainty, and the unresolved “Kond problem” — discussions about demolition, relocation, and redevelopment. Instead of erasing the district, #kondgallery proposed reframing it.
The idea was simple, almost partisan: invade with art. Paint the walls. Collaborate with locals. Activate the streets.
Without waiting for institutional approval or large-scale urban reform, the project turned the district itself into a platform. Walls became canvases. Stairways became exhibition routes. Backyards became potential studios, souvenir shops, and guesthouses. The branding principle behind #kondgallery was similar to Yerevantropics: identity begins with a powerful, memorable name. The hashtag was essential. It transformed a physical neighborhood into a digital movement. It made Kond searchable, shareable, and culturally visible. Rather than designing a classical visual identity system, the project built a living, evolving brand through action. Murals, street art interventions, documentation, and community collaboration became the core assets. The district itself was the logo. The hill was the symbol. The layered architecture was the typography. Launched in 2018, the initiative quickly reshaped perception. Kond became one of the must-visit spots in Yerevan — not because it was renovated, but because it was reinterpreted. At its core, #kondgallery is a socio-cultural positioning project. It challenges the idea that progress equals demolition. It questions whether replacing history with new buildings truly solves urban issues.
It proposes that meaning can be more powerful than reconstruction. By creating economic opportunities for residents — encouraging them to open souvenir shops, small hotels, or cultural spaces — the project aimed to grow local potential from within rather than displace it from above.
Instead of waiting for the government to “solve” Kond, the project suggested a different solution: Change the narrative.
Change the perception. Let culture create value.
Conceptually, #kondgallery asks:
Can art act as urban strategy? Can branding preserve history instead of replacing it?
#kondgallery is not about decorating walls. It is about protecting atmosphere, activating community, and giving a historic district a new future without erasing its past.
Within a few years, #kondgallery evolved from a local urban intervention into an internationally recognized cultural project.
What began as a partisan gesture on the hill of Kond gradually became a destination for artists from around the world. Creators working across disciplines — street art, muralism, 3D installations, sculpture, photography, printmaking, and experimental media — contributed their work to the district, each leaving a distinct mark within its historic fabric.
The project transformed into a layered archive of global urban expression.
Different languages. Different aesthetics. One context.
Kond became not only a neighborhood, but a platform — a living, breathing exhibition space without walls, tickets in the traditional sense.
Its growth was organic. No institutional framework. No rigid structure. Just momentum built through collaboration, visibility, and cultural relevance.
As artists from different countries added their perspectives, #kondgallery expanded beyond a branding initiative into a world-known art phenomenon — positioning Kond on the global map of contemporary urban culture.
It became a landmark to be experienced. And through this process, the project demonstrated how a strong idea — powered by naming, action, and collective participation — can transform a marginalized space into an international cultural reference point.
