Karine has a rare ability to empathize with her subjects, "... I respect the people I photograph, I see a dignified person in each one of them. Its is so rewarding when they trust me and allow me to take their pictures. I like to get a sense of their condition and emotions before I can capture them so that the viewer will also sense who they are..." Karine has also taken her camera to the streets of Los Angeles, New York, Washington, D.C. to capture the plight of homeless people on film. As a result, she produced a documentary slide show. Karine's portfolio includes travel pictures, documentary photos and portraits. Her recent trips have been to Iran, Portugal, the Netherlands, Germany, London, Paris, Turkey, Italy and Greece.

Karine Armen (Kurkjian) has a M.A. in Educational administration from California State University, Los Angeles. She has a B.A. in Photography and Social Work from University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Karine was in Armenia in June of 1999 where she photographed a variety of subjects in Karabagh and other cities. The first time that Karine went to Armenia was in March of 1990 where she worked as a mental health counselor with the earthquake survivors of Gumri. Both times she was touched by the hospitality and kindness of the Armenian people. Karine's recent photographs were published inView from Yerevan [Hayatsk Yerevanits]. Her work has been published in AIM( Armenia International Magazine), Ararat quarterly, The Guardian, Glendale News Press, and The Best of College Photography Annual 1985. She has exhibited her photographs several times and has contibuted her work to many non-prophet fund raising events.