Following a long absence from exhibition halls, artist Encho Pironkov opens an exhibition on 10 February at Forum Gallery in Sofia. On opening day the vernissage will run from 6 to 8 pm, and visitors will be able to see the display until mid-March.  A talented contemporary painter, Pironkov is a leading artist of the so-called Plovdiv School of 1960s. The famous group from the city of Plovdiv includes also Georgi Bozhilov Slona, Dimitar Kirov, Ioan Leviev and Hristo Stefanov. The Plovdiv group is known for both its national and international success. Works by the group's artists are kept in prestigious world galleries, museums and private collections.

The exhibition of Encho Pironkov due to open tomorrow is an event that his fans have been waiting for. As the maestro admits, his art is only addressed to people in need of the spiritual energy encoded in his paintings with love and dedication. Keeping a silence for years, the foremost painter was not very talkative in an interview for Radio Bulgaria recorded by his daughter Vida Pironkova.

Is striking a balance important for a man of art and what lies at the foundation of art? Here is his answer:

„Striking a balance can hardly be done because life is just a moment - unique and elusive; a moment that is only endowed by God and Nature. Striking a balance to decide whether a work of art is great or not is not the job of an artist. In the art that I create human energy and the human spirit takes center stage. People are not interested in the paintings that represent material carriers. They are attracted by what works of art emanate, by the message. God created man and breathed in him His energy. Whoever can control it, can create great art.”

Encho Pironkov is among the few Bulgarian artists who earned international fame at a relatively young age. And this happened even without academic training. He is a genuine rough diamond. He graduated the high school in Plovdiv. His first successes came in the 1960s when his works were shown at the First Exhibition of Young Artists in Sofia. This was followed by dozens of one-artist displays in Bulgaria, Italy, Germany, Hungary, Poland and other countries. Pironkov's paintings are based on various plots but dialogue, communication and exchange of energy is the source of their creative worth. Human figures are usually presented together put at the center of compositions. They talk, dance or observe the world. The artist's distinct talent shows in the selection of colors and the way he works with them.

„The colors are a kind of a form that helps express the personality”, he said. “The colors are teasers that attract attention. The talent to control an extensive range of colors and tones is important, since it inspires viewers to feel the new worlds that the artist has created. This is a mystery gift. Even an artist endowed with it cannot explain it. Encoded in a spiritual way in paintings it is the source of spirituality that art lovers are looking for.”

Encho Pironkov has also left a vestige in applied and monumental art. He has created mosaics, frescos, stained glass, as well as figurines. He is the author of the lavish set design for the historical movie The Weddings of Tsar Ioan Asen. He is also set designer of a number of productions of the Plovdiv Puppet Theater. Do his works target a definite type of audience?

„Art has always been addressed to those who need art”, Encho Pironkov says. “It is precisely this way that art emerged - as spiritual energy conveyed to the chosen. After all, not all human beings have the need of spirituality. It is either inborn or is cultivated but without it there is no contact between the artist and the audience. I create my art with great love. I am convinced that art is a personal expression. This is what makes it so appealing; so unique and enigmatic.”

English Daniela Konstantinova