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The Independent, 04/24/2001 |
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-Main- |
Russian-Armenian the
INS to stay in the
country By Jeff Carter Independent Newspapers BELMONT
- When Greg Orduyan became
the Moscow Golden Gloves
champion back in 1987, some
wondered if the 16-year-old of
Russian-Armenian decent would
pursue the dream of win- ning
an Olympic medal. Hardly. As
someone dripping with artis- tic
talent, Orduyan, who first picked
up a paint brush at 3, had a much
bigger dream — of coming to
California and making it in the art
world. "This
is the artists' paradise," said
Orduyan, now 30 and living BOXER:
page 4A |
Prev | The Independent, April 24, 2001 | Next |
NOT PAINTED INTO A CORNER | |||
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PHOTO: SUSAN CALDWELL
GRAPHIC : V.C ROSS | |||
BOXER: Artist trying to remain in country | |||
Continued
from 1A in
a modest Belmont apart- 'When
people see
in March of 1998 as having extraordinary ability, his paperwork was lost by the INS, according to Wada. "Once a person clears the 'extraordinary' hurdle, there's also something com- mon to all applicants in that they must pass a medical exam, and FBI background check. Somewhere between the first phase and the sec- ond his paperwork was lost |
by the INS," said Wada. That was down at the INS Customer Service center in Laguna Niguel by a case worker different from the one who notified Orduyan in March in San Francisco that he again needed to provide documented evidence of his "extraordinary artistic abili- ty," something he'd already done according to his father. There is no deadline as to when the INS needs to certify his residency status - which still contains the possibility of deportation - but Orduyan, said his attorney, has until June 25 to adhere to the INS' request. "What it comes down to is who runs out of options first. It's almost like, who's going to get tired first, and who's going to be the first to quit," said Orduyan. In these past few weeks to satisfy the INS, Orduyan has lined up five art shows, three in New York, one in San Francisco, and another on the Peninsula, all to go with- in the next month. There are plenty of people working in Orduyan's cor- ner, an impressive list of art gallery owners, artists, and professional acquaintances he's made along the way when he first arrived on the New York art scene 10 years ago. "I am an artist who has been given the Extraordinary Visa and green card for Extraordinary Ability in the Arts," world-renowned artist Valery Boyakjon wrote in a letter to the INS. "I am giving my highest recommendation for contemporary artist Gregory Orduyan. I consider him an unequalled artist, who seems determined to make a great contribution to society through his art." One gets the impression that if a daughter brought him home to meet her par- ents, the mother would lean back from the kitchen table and cast a wink and a thumbs up. "I've known Greg for almost 10 years," said Minerva Durham, director of Spring Studio in New York. "That was back when he supported himself at first by working in a bakery all night. He's an extraordinary individual. In all that time, he's the only student of mine who ever said, 'I thank you, and my family thanks you.' That's pretty rare, because artists are such individuals." Orduyan earned the highest marks while attending art school and graduated from the College of Art in Krasnopresnenskaya in Moscow. Once Orduyan hit New York in 1991, word quickly spread about the sensational young Russian, although Orduyan downplays his superstardom. Some of Orduyan's oil paintings have sold for as much as $5,000, but others, like "Taxi Blues" - which hangs near the kitchen of Orduyan's apartment that doubles as a personal art gallery - are essentially priceless because they have so much sentimental value. "We would never consider selling any of these paint- ings. These are like our own children." For someone with a signa- ture piece entitled "Queen of Fate," Orduyan remains unsure of his own. That will be left up to the INS, and according to Orduyan, "To be considered, 'an extraordinary achiever,' you almost have to win an Academy Award or have your [art]work shown at the Museum of Modern Art. The problem with that is, most of the artists shown there, or at Guggenheim, are all dead." |