For a second year in a row the Institute of Contemporary Art-Sofia is in anticipation of the BAZA award for young author in the field of contemporary art. It falls within the already existing international network of artists from different countries of Central and Eastern Europe (YVAA) and has already gained recognition as one of the most prestigious awards. The contest is open for artists up to the age of 35 working in all media of contemporary art. The prize itself is a grant and a six month scholarship with the International Studio and Curatorial Program (ISCP), New York realized with the support of The Foundation for a Civil Society, New York.

The award aims at stimulating the professional start of the artists offering them more opportunities for participation, development, education and networking in their own countries as well as abroad. This also conforms with the policy of Sofia City Art Gallery to encourage and support projects of young authors and modern art.

The first BAZA edition with the exhibition of the nominees for 2008 got the recognition of the critics as one of the most significant artistic events in our country. This year we are also to witness the first solo exhibition of last year award winner Rada Boukova.

The exhibition of the nominees is an event in itself and is of great interest not only because it presents just one winner. According to the specific character of the contest the reduced number of participant nominees in itself allows for distinguishing a group of leading young artists in the country (the six nominees have been selected among 37 applicants). This also meets the expectations of the viewers for the quality of the exhibition. The presentation of each author includes works created especially for the occasion or already displayed in other solo or representative group exhibitions – paintings, drawings, videos, objects and installation.

The members of the selection committee - Vassileva, Iara Boubnova, Stanislav Pamukchiev, Kiril Prashkov and Ventsislav Zankov.

The winner is Samuil Stoyanov

http://www.samuilstoyanov.com/

VIENNESE ACTIONISM. FROM PAINTING TO ACTION Works from the MUMOK collection (Museum for Modern Art Ludwig Foundation), Vienna

11 June 2009 - 05 July 2009

Cooperation between the Sofia City Art Gallery and one of Europe’s most interesting and active museums, namely the MUMOK in Vienna is a remarkable undertaking, which is a powerful indication of SCAG intentions and ambitions. The long-term cooperation project sets out to present several large-scale exhibitions following the development of modern art between the 1960’s and the present day.

“Viennese actionism” is the first exhibition in the said series. This is the most emblematic Austrian movement, which, though very short-lived (1960-1971), had a significant impact on the international development of avant-garde, making the notion of the latter a much more inclusive one. The movement fights against conservative values in both art and life, opposing the conventional genres of painting, sculpture and drawing by highlighting direct work in space with the human body, as well as with various liquids and objects. Actions by representatives of the movement violate a number of taboos in an attempt to gain more genuine experience of both physical and mental reality. Other means of expression, besides performances, are film and photography.

Artists Günter Brus, Otto Mühl, Hermann Nitsch and Rudolf Schwarzkogler are the major representatives of Viennese Actionism and it is their work that the exhibition focuses on. It also features works by world-famous artists such as Jackson Pollock, Emilio Vedova and Yves Klein, who herald Viennese Actionism in their attempts to move away from conventional styles in painting. The exhibition also features works by Marina Abramovic, Vito Acconci, VALIE EXPORT, Yoko Ono, Carolee Schneemann, whose actions are reminiscent of Viennese actionists’ critical tone with regard to social, political and artistic issues.

The exhibition features 61 works, including photographs, prints, videos, paintings. Exhibition catalogue in Bulgarian and English is also available.

HELVETICA FOREVER STORY OF A TYPEFACE Installation, documentation

06 June 2009 - 12 June 2009

The exposition is dedicated to the 50th anniversary since the creation of one of the most widely used typefaces known as Helvetica.

The result of the efforts of two typeface designers – Max Miedenger and Eduard Hoffmann – Helvetica turns into an aesthetic constant and bridges the abrupt transition from the lead press to the digital processing of the text in the sixties. The typeface is characterized by simplicity and minimalism, the drawing is compact, legible and expressive. That makes Helvetica an efficient instrument for graphic designers from the sixties of the 20th century to the present day. The stately delicacy of this typeface gives freedom in finding an adequate outward representation of different ideas.
Having found application in various areas of graphic design, advertising, book printing etc. Helvetica, with its simplicity, modern lines and proportions is still valid and widely used in different languages even today.

Among the items of the exhibition one can find original sketches recording the process of creating Helvetica. The exposition traces also the implementation of the typeface during different historical periods and offers evidence for its use in a variety of contexts.

Helvetica Forever: Story of a Typeface is a sequel to Lars Müller and Victor Malsy’s book with the same title. The exhibition comes to Bulgaria after being to the USA and Japan and is part of the events included in the Sofia Design Week festival organized by Magazine 1.