Abastan is a creative community nestled in the small town of Tumanyan amidst the mountains of Northern Armenia. Our mission is to nurture and spread a “something-out-of-nothing” approach to creativity as a form of making and being.

We believe that creativity is not a luxury or profession but a way of relating – to materials, people, and place – and not a rare talent but a basic human capacity, essential to building resilient and collaborative societies. From cardboard and clay, old machinery and plastic bags, hay, stones, and broken furniture, we create artworks, everyday objects, shared experiences and new kinds of spaces. Our vision is rooted in low-waste, low-cost and contextual forms of making: we work with what we have, not what we buy. In a world that rewards consumption, we choose creative transformation. This approach is especially vital in places where resources are limited and infrastructures are fragile, but where imagination is as abundant as anywhere else.