Photographers, cinematographers, visual campaign designers, creators of documentary features, videos and short films. Ideologists and founders of the AGITPROP film company, as well as co-founders of the Bulgarian Photographic Association, Boris Missirkov and Georgi Bogdanov are among the most prominent participants in the contemporary art scene.

Their Sofia City Art Gallery exhibition features more than 80 portraits of famous Bulgarian cultural and community leaders. The exhibition venue is transformed into a photographic spectacle, offering a summarized portrait of our society through the images of some of its most notable members.

The photographs featured in this exhibition were created between 1992 and 2013. The artists made a portrait of their generation and circle – contemporary Bulgarian actors, film directors, camera operators, photographers, authors, producers, musicians, television hosts, friends. Among them are Javor Gardev, Martichka Bozhilova, Nadezhda Koseva, Georgi Tenev, Kamen Donev, Koyna Ruseva, Snezhina Petrova, Deyan Donkov, Nina Nikolina, Ivan Lechev, Denis Rizov, Andrei Batashov, Stefan Valdobrev, Marius Kurkinski, Hristo Mutafchiev, Maya Bejanska and others. Also featured in the storyline are Bulgarian politicians, as well as foreign nationals having crossed paths with the artists: Antonina Stoyanova, Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, Sergei Stanishev, Terence Trent D’Arby, Javier Mariscal, Issey Miyake, David Carson, Elliott Earls.

The exhibition comprises two groups of portraits – representative and freestyle. The former abide by the laws of classic studio photography, where front-view shots, neutral backgrounds and statically arranged compositions prevail. The latter may be characterized as accidentally captured images revealing unusual perspectives and positions. Thus the artists have created two images of the same generation, which is liberated, yet also focused on its aims and mission.

Boris Missirkov and Georgi Bogdanov rely on techniques used in classic and advertising photography, coupled with snapshot techniques, thus creating a moving photographic language.

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The presence of the people having been portrayed, as well as the compelling style of the artists, characterized by exquisite taste and intuition, render the project a positive sign of the times, namely of the past 20 years.

The exhibition will be accompanied by a book of photographs (180 pages, hardcover) by “Janet-45” Publishing, featuring texts by Walter Seidl, Maria Vassileva and Georgi Lozanov.

A project of

The project received co-funding under the 2013 “Culture” Program of the Capital City Municipality, it was implemented to back up the application of Sofia and the South-western Region for European capital of culture – 2019 г.