By the initiative of the Rare Book Department, a meeting-lecture with calligrapher and visual artist Ruben Malayan on the topic of Armenian calligraphy was held in the reading room of the art department. Malayan is a long-time patron of the National Library and has studied Armenian calligraphy for many years. Malayan presented the history of Armenian written culture, viewing it as a constantly evolving system, but with strong Mashtotsian roots. The speaker discussed the deep directions of contemporary calligraphy as well as the legacy of Mashtot script, manuscript, and printing culture. He emphasized the experience of the Danielic script and its importance while outlining the historical development of the Armenian alphabet. The structural and spiritual harmony of the Mashtots script, a fundamental component of Armenian identity and culture, was examined in this context.

Ruben Malayan presented the evolution of calligraphy, how the main types of writing – cursive (rounded cursive), italic, and notr script (smaller cursive) – developed from Mashtotsian scripts. The historical environment of their creation, their practical significance, and their aesthetic characteristics were discussed. The evolution of handwritten, printed, and ornamental culture was a significant aspect of the lecture. The peculiarities and changes of ancient literature, as well as the shift from the custom of manuscripts to printed books, were also discussed. The distinctions between handwritten and printed charms, as well as the concepts and meaning of ornamental designs—particularly bird designs—were given particular attention. Calligraphy was presented as a direction of modern art. It was discussed how the letter transforms from a pure linguistic unit into an artistic line, form and composition, becoming an independent direction

The lecture concluded with a demonstration of Ruben Malayan’s personal portfolio, where the author presented his calligraphic works as a modern and creative expression of Mashtots’ principles. During his presentation of his artwork, Malayan mentioned that he is finally writing down Grigor Narekatsi's "Book of Lamentations" monument in calligraphy. He sees his work as a journey, some of which has already been completed. There are 95 chapters and over 368 thousand letters in the "Book of Lamentations." The meeting, which was filled with new knowledge, demonstrated the vitality and enduring nature of Armenian calligraphy.