YEREVAN. – The difference between a photo and art is that art lies, world-famous photographer Ara Guler said.

The exhibition of the photographer opened at the National Gallery of Armenia on Tuesday.

“Art has to do nothing with life, while a photo is a part of reality,” he said, adding that many of his friends were theater people, and he often watched performances on the other side of the stage.

Asked to comment on the changing Turkish society, the great photographer said he does not care about state affairs.

“If there is something in the world that I hate, it is politics,” he said, adding that people should love one another and must become closer.

Speaking about the profession of a photojournalist, Guler said that “a good journalist should always be ready to shoot.”

“Being an Armenian is an advantage,” he said, adding that he never hid his ethnicity.

“During all my life I was running for happiness, but could not catch it. I think happiness is something that I see through my lens,” the photographer said.

He also admitted that when taking photos of beautiful women, the main thing for him was to grab a person’s character.

“The beauty of a person passes away, the character is what stays forever,” the master said.

After the press conference, the head of the National Association of Armenian photographers Sergey Hakobyan granted Ara Guler the title of honorary member of the association.

Photo by Arsen Sargsyan/NEWS.am