In Old Town, there is a concentration of Bulgarian Revival houses and one of these is Stambolyan House. The Bulgarian artist Dimitar Kirov resided in this home in the 1960’s. In the 80’s and 90’s the house was used as a cultural hub of sorts, for artists of the city. Today, Stambolyan is full of Dimitar’s gorgeous work.
Stambolyan House
The house itself is enormous consisting of three floors including the basement, each with a similar layout. One large parlour type room sits centre, with smaller rooms to either side.
The entire house is full of Dimitar’s paintings. It is clear that his home influenced some of his work as light fixtures, the piano and specific features can be seen in various paintings.
Dimitar Kirov
Born in Turkey in 1935, Dimitar Kirov graduated from the National Academy of Fine Arts in Sofia in 1959. He was a prolific artist and worked with paint, mosaic, sgraffito and monumental art. A few mosaics are located in the courtyard, however most of the work shown here at the house are his paintings. He passed in 2008.
Paintings
I am a huge fan of art from the 60’s and 70’s. Anyone who knows me, and the few that I invited into my home in Canada, can attest to my love of this period of painting. Most of my collection dates from these decades. Stambolyan House contains a small portion of Kirov’s later works.
The huge brush strokes combined with the liberal use of paint is what initially attracts me.
Seeing Dimitar’s work, I was able to admire this form and experience varying subject matter unique to Bulgaria and elsewhere in Europe. Many of these photographs represent a small portion of a larger painting. The glare from the lighting was not conducive to capturing an entire painting.
An interesting piece is called “Aggression”. I don’t know any artist, who has not succumbed to angst and anxiety at one time or another. The beauty of being an artist means that one has a form to express difficult emotions.
Stambolyan is one of two houses that have been turned into an art gallery. I had such an enjoyable morning visiting here. Another post will cover my visit to the second gallery, the Zlatyu Boyazdhiev Exhibition.
