In May, 2012 the Armenian and European designers travelled across Armenia visiting museums and other cultural places, meeting Armenian well know artists and designers. By the end of the residency programme in Armenia the European designers already had an understanding and feel of the Armenian culture and returned back to their homes full of ideas and inspiration. The residency gave an opportunity to the designers to also know each other better, understand the techniques and approaches that they use when designing their cloths. In the result, the pairs have been formed based on their interests and work style. In their turn, Armenian designers have been given the chance to explore the cultural heritage and traditions of the European countries and develop their collections which transfer the cultural identity of countries and present different cultures in unity and harmony.

Aram Nikolyan has been in Romania for ten days and experienced the cultural life of the country, learned more about traditional costumes and started working on the sketches. Aram Nikolyan and Andra Clitan have developed their sketches, inspired by the architecture of the Armenian and Romanian churches and the clerical robes. Aram introduced some architectural lines of the Romanian churches into his designs, whereas Andra's work was influenced by the patterns of the Armenian priests' vestments.

Kristine Avetisyan visited Czech Republic in June. She visited museums, galleries and participated in a fashion exhibition, organized by Czech students. Kristine Avetisyan and Czech Pavel Ivancic have developed their sketches, inspired by the works of artists of both countries. Pavel Ivancic was fascinated by Parajanov collages, and Kristine was impressed by the Czech artist Adriena Simotova's works.

During her visit to London, Lusine Kostanyan attended several exhibitions and meetings. The programme not only provided her with sources of inspiration and admiration, but also offered an opportunity to experience a professional growth at a meeting with Roberto Cavalli, one of the renowned fashion designers.  She had the chance to visited Bath city and the Museum of Fashion, where the dresses of queens, including the wedding gown of the Queen Victoria II are exhibited. Lusine was especially impressed by the collections of the gloves, made of different patterns, fabrics, with lace-work, embroidered in gold and silver thread. Geannine Pollazzon, the UK participant, was impressed by the hues of the Armenian carpets. The pair has used elements of the English gloves and Armenian carpets in their collections.

The creative partners Ani Iskandaryan and Ida Gro were also inspired by the beautiful

landscape of both countries. Green and flowery nature and lightness of the Danish sky inspired Ani. Besides Copenhagen, Ani has also been to Kolding and Aarhus, where she was introduced to the Danish clothes, visited the School of Design and met young designers. In her turn Ida saw so many fascinating things in a very short time that it was like a bombardment of potential inspiration. Her sketches show a mix of many stories.

A visit to the historical museum of Berlin was quite inspiring for Gayane Soghomonyan. The cold but at the same time feminine image of a German woman inspired her. Considering the fact that the Armenian woman has had her unique role in the history and culture of Armenia, she has dwelt on this image.  Melanie Freier has developed sketches of male garments, inspired by Armenian architecture and symbols: birds. Having spent 10 days in Germany, Gayane and Melanie did not only become good friends, but managed to draft new ideas for their future collection.

Check the photos.