Twenty four artists from Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Serbia and Montenegro, Hungary and the Czech Republic are presented in an unusual traveling exhibition. Paintings, videos, objects, installations and prints are gathered into a collection to show the new face of Europe.

At a time when Europe is witnessing the birth of its new history, the recourse to the creative sources of different countries is an opportunity for extending the dialogue. The sponsors of the exhibition – Siemens and HVB Bank Biochim together with Gallery Hilger, Viena – are interested in talented people in all European countries regardless of whether these countries are members of the European Union or not. The creative energy transgresses any political, economic and geographic boundaries. It is in the unification of this creativity that the partners of Siemens and HVB Bank Biochim see the opportunity for an active dialogue between neighbouring countries and the reconsidering of values, which is one of the challenges we all have to face. The common language of art is going to help people grasp the meaning behind the idea of “united Europe”.

The project CENTRAL. New Art from New Europe gives the chance to young authors from several European countries to present their works to a diverse audience. The exhibition is constantly evolving, renewing and adapting itself to the particular surroundings. So far it has been shown in different cities of Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Serbia and Montenegro, Croatia.

The end of the exhibition is going to be celebrated with a concert of scholarship students from the “International Summer Academy Prague – Vienna – Budapest”, which is an educational institution for young musicians at the Vienna University of Music and Performing Arts.

RUMEN SKORCHEV painting and drawing

07 June 2006 - 09 July 2006

Rumen Skorchev is among the artists whose name is of great significance for the contemporary Bulgarian graphics and illustration. Having graduated in Landscape Architecture from the University of Forestry in 1957 and then Illustration from the Sofia Art Academy in 1964, Rumen Skorchev made an immediate breakthrough into the artistic life of Bulgaria. Several generations have grown up with his book illustrations, which makes him well-known and loved by the Bulgarian public. The artist is equally popular outside the country. Since 1969 he has taken part in numerous international biennials and representative expositions of illustrations, graphics, drawings and paintings.

The current exhibition at Sofia Art Gallery comprises of paintings and drawings created during the last years. The exposition allows for the representation of Skorchev’s concept through the expressive means of painting.

The drawings are characterized by the spontaneity of the creative process. Executed in ecstatic plastic lines, they convey dynamics showing supreme mastery of form.

In his paintings Rumen Skorchev poses the question of tradition and succession. He dwells on some eternal issues of humanity as well as mythological and historic subjects interpreted in a symbolic way through association and metaphor. His paintings combine bright colours, contrast and a semantically loaded composition. Furthermore, they exemplify the transition of the author from graphics to painting and the continuity of his creative explorations. On the whole the exposition shows the transformations in Rumen Skorchev’s plastic concept along the way from graphics to painting through the colourful vivacity and the multi-varied line of the drawing.

Curator of the exhibition: Daniela Chulova

Pavlin Kotsev painting

01 June 2006 - 22 June 2006

“ …… Pavlin Kotsev paints from life.
His colours are rich and the form is solidly shaped…
His interests are directed towards the spiritual atmosphere inherent in each of his works.”
Prof. Dr. Valentin Angelov

The current exposition includes paintings created over the past few years. The exhibition is dedicated to the author’s 70th birthday anniversary.

Pavlin Kotsev is one of the most eminent representatives of contemporary Bulgarian realism. Drawing from his poetic inspiration, he has been praising the beauty of his native village of Tipchenitsa for years on end. It has virtually become a never exhausting source of subject matter for the painter.

Being in love with people, the earth, the sea and the sky, Pavlin Kotsev tries to embody them in his paintings as a symbol of the throbbing life. The painter lets the viewers into his rich artistic world. His paintings evoke hidden feelings making people gasp at the beauty and glory of nature and remember their spiritual identity.

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Pavlin Kotsev was born on 13th July 1936 in the village of Tipchenitsa near Montana. He graduated in graphic art from the National Academy of Arts in Sofia under Professor Vesselin Staikov and Professor Evtim Tomov. In 1974 he specialized in Paris. He visited Venice and Florence. In 1982 he continued his education in Saint Petersburg and Moscow. The painter has had 14 one-man exhibitions so far. Works of his are among the possessions of the National Art Gallery, Sofia Art Gallery, almost every art gallery around the country, the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts in Moscow, Alois Englander’s collection, Vienna, private collections in France, Belgium, Germany, Cyprus etc. He lives and works in Sofia.