This year’s National Autumn Exhibitions in Plovdiv cast a glance beyond the surface through the individual perception of ten contemporary artists and the way they interpret secrets hidden from the eyes of the uninitiated – as in a magic theatre, they lend density to all things beyond conventional bounds.

The longest surviving forum of contemporary art in Bulgaria opens on 1 September in the quaint surroundings of Plovdiv’s Old Town. The story goes back to 1967 when Alexander Krustev, better known as Nacho Kulturata (Culture) for all of his efforts towards making his town a hub of culture, put on display, in the courtyard of his own house, water colours by Georgi Bozhilov-Slona. Since then, every year, artists in the classical genres – painting, graphic arts, sculpture, ceramics, drawing – have been presenting to the public individual exhibitions of their works.

“Alexander Krustev’s idea was to breathe an artistic spirit into these ancient houses, and most of all the green spaces around them,” says Prof. Galina Lardeva, curator of the exhibitions. “At the time the Plovdiv school of art was very influential, Alexander Krustev himself was good friends with Georgi Bozhilov, Dimitar Kirov, Yoan Leviev, Encho Pironkov and other prominent artists. What actually happened was that he gave the then young artists an alternative for displaying their artwork, an option different to the exhibition halls of the Union of Bulgarian Artists or the regional galleries, as was customary at the time. The idea of these autumn exhibitions has always been to be an alternative – a place for the artistic spirit, for freedom of expression, a place for all of these bohemian artists who are the motor of important processes in art in this country. There has never been any attempt to impose any restrictions, and the exhibitions have always been open to all kinds of experiments, alternative views, new processes, introduced by the artists taking part in them.”

Prof. Galina Lardeva says that even in our day, the National Autumn Exhibitions are imbued with a feeling that they are an alternative - to the commercial way most private galleries operate, and a forum for the most active participants in the process of innovation in modern art.

In her capacity of artistic director, Prof. Galina Lardeva has, for several years made every effort to bring together these one-man shows into one curator project. Whereas last year she presented the placebo effect in art, this year, the artists she has selected were given the task of investigating what lies “Beyond the Surface”.

“In a sense “Beyond the Surface” is a tease, a broader view of the idea of the visual image”, Prof. Galina Lardeva explains. “The idea of “above” and “beneath” the surface is something that is inherent to the Bulgarian language as a model of the way the visible and the invisible is perceived. “Beyond” the surface on the other hand goes beyond the perception and the idea of depth and superficiality. That is why my project aims to showcase authors who are able to work at the level of matter, but also at the level of meaning of the visual image.”

The exhibitions feature works by master portrait painter Bogdan Alexandrov, young painter Sevket Sonmez, who lives in Plovdiv and in Istanbul, graphic artist from Plovdiv Monika Romenska, photographer Daniel Lekov, also a graphic artist, Kaloyan Iliev-Kokimoto, an established name in conceptual painting, sculptors Martian Tabakov and Martin Trifonov etc. As ever, their works will be on show at the Balabanov House, the Hinlyan House and at the Mexican Art House in Plovdiv’s Old Town.

English version: Milena Daynova