Apart from being described as “the Capital of Humour” and “the Bulgarian Manchester”, Gabrovo is also known as “the Town of Bridges”. Over the years of its long history, the specifics of the topography and location of the settlement have shaped not only its appearance, but also the character of Gabrovians, who have earned the reputation of “tough Balkan people”. In the nickname “the Town of Bridges”, besides the well-known fact that there are a large number of bridges over the Yantra River, one could also look for a purely symbolic meaning due to the fact that the main pass connecting North and South Bulgaria can indeed be found in Gabrovo.
The history of the town tells us that in the late 19th and early 20th century Gabrovo stonemasons – bridge builders – were among the most sought after, even outside Bulgarian lands. There are reports that local craftsmen, and later entrepreneurs, built bridges in Turkey, Serbia and Wallachia regions.
This historical fact, together with the fact that Gabrovo is famous for its many bridges, is what gives name to the “BRIDGES” National Painting Triennial, which is organised by the Hristo Tsokev Art Gallery. The Ministry of Culture, Gabrovo Municipality and the Union of Bulgarian Artists (UBA) are all partners of the event, each of them awarding their own prizes according to the competitive nature of the exhibition. The idea for the exhibition has existed since 2016, and its realisation is the fruit of the initiative and hard work of the Hristo Tsokev Art Gallery crew. The Triennial restores a long broken tradition – Gabrovo to be a centre of contemporary art. This tradition was interrupted precisely with the holding of the last edition of the General Art Exhibition in the town in 1988, the first such exhibition having opened in 1974. The specifics of the social order in the second half of the 20th century made it necessary for the exhibition to have a labour theme.
Today the National Triennial is held under the patronage of the Mayor of Gabrovo Municipality as a stage for contemporary artists, both young and ambitious, and already established ones. They present paintings dedicated to the theme of the exhibition and freely interpreting it, which helps create a diverse and representative selection. The organisers put two aspects in the title. The first one is purely philosophical – it sees the bridge as an expression of man’s eternal desire to overcome, to conquer, to explore and to connect, as a natural aspiration to defy divisions, boundaries, barriers and chasms. In the second aspect, the bridge is seen as the most significant structure that man has built. It is more imposing and more resistant than houses. It belongs to all and is the same for all.
In the first edition of the “BRIDGES” Triennial in 2017, 61 artists took part, presenting 99 works.
The prizes in this edition are awarded to:
Kosta Donchev for the work “All Souls’ Day” – The Gabrovo Municipality Award
Tsvetan Kolev for the work “Lights” – The Ministry of Culture Award
Rumen Deshev for the works “Composition I” and “Composition II” – The Union of Bulgarian Artists (UBA) Award
Donka Nedelcheva for the work “Subjects” – The Hristo Tsokev Art Gallery Award
Emma Verterova for the work “Butterfly” – The Regional Governor of Gabrovo Award
Todor Zahariev for the work “Quiet Land” – The Central Balkan National Park Directorate Award
In the “Young Artist” category (up to 35 years):
Yavor Kostadinov for the work “Danube Bridge I and II. Variant VII” – The Hristo Tsokev Art Gallery Award
2021 EDITION
The opening ceremony of the second edition of the “BRIDGES” National Painting Triennial was on July 2, 2021 at the Hristo Tsokev Art Gallery. Works by 117 artists were submitted for the exhibition. The jury was composed of Lyuben Genov (Union of Bulgarian Artists) as the chairman and Desislava Dikova (Ministry of Culture), Ivan Hristov (Gabrovo Municipality), Lyudmil Veselinov, who has a PhD in Art History and Fine Arts, Momchil Georgiev (Union of Bulgarian Artists), Evgeni Nedev (head of the Hristo Tsokev Art Gallery), and Mariana Maneva (member of the UBA in Gabrovo) as the members. The jury admitted 92 artists to participate with 139 works.
Prize winners are:
Plamen Kirilov for his works “Somewhere in Time VI” and “Somewhere in Time VII” – Gabrovo Municipality Award
Ivan Velchev – Yovo for the work “Gorge I” – The Ministry of Culture Award
Stilyana Uzunova for his work “Life” – The Union of Bulgarian Artists Award
Zlati Zlatev for his work “Forgotten Bridges II” – The Hristo Tsokev Art Gallery Award
Nikolay Todorov for his work “Sacrament – Initial Signs II” – The Regional Governor of Gabrovo Award
Sevda Poturlyan for her work “Stolen View” – The “Ciela Norma” Award
Georgi Popov for his work “Spring Sun” – The “Ciela Norma” Award
In the “Young Artist” category (up to 35 years):
Petra Dimitrova for her work “The Asparuhov Bridge II” – The Hristo Tsokev Art Gallery Award
Mariana Stoyanova was given second place in this category for her works “Landscape #5” and “Landscape #6” from the “Nature” series
2024 EDITION
The opening ceremony for the third edition of the exhibition was on November 8, 2024 at the Hristo Tsokev Art Gallery. Members of the jury were: Mariana Karakostova (Ministry of Culture), Galina Vitanova (Gabrovo Municipality), Stanislav Goncharov (curator in the Hristo Tsokev Art Gallery), Valentin Uzunov (UBA), Anton Antonov (UBA), Evgeni Nedev (UBA), and Deyan Boev (UBA). They admitted 84 artists to participate.
The nominees were the following:
Bisera Valeva for her works “Cave Monastery I” and “Cave Monastery II”
Georgi Pasev for his diptych work ‘Vertical Bridges”
Darina Tsureva for her works “Under the Bridge” and “Unnecessary Load”
Kaliya Kalacheva for her work “Under the Bridge II”
Nikolay Todorov for his works “Sacrament – Magura XIV” and “Sacrament IX”
Tanya Paseva for her work “We Are Bridges”
The winners are the following:
Ivo Bistritzky for his work “Metaphysics” /diptych/ – The Gabrovo Municipality Award
Svetoslava Georgieva for her work “A Thousand Ways to Cross” – The Ministry of Culture Award
Atanas Totlyakov for his works “Diptych Bridge Vision /tactility/ Vision – Part 1 and 2” – The Union of Bulgarian Artists Award
Andrey Yanev for his works “Sandy Skies” and “Distant Horizon” – The Hristo Tsokev Art Gallery Award
Martina Karaivanova for her work “The Rope Bridge – Uniting the Currents” – The Hristo Tsokev Art Gallery Award
The prizes in the “Young Artist” category were the following:
The Hristo Tsokev Art Gallery Award, given to Ilker Danailov for his work “Shadow/Self Portrait”
The Hristo Tsokev Art Gallery and The Union of Bulgarian Artists Awards were given to Samuil Stoyanov for his work “Are You Walking?”
Dr. Nelly Nedeva
Translation by Irina Parvanova