A Picture Beyond the Picture is the first major retrospective exhibition dedicated to Ivan Vukadinov (1932–2024)—the only Bulgarian artist accepted into the Collection of Modern and Contemporary Art of the Vatican Museums. The exhibition has a retrospective nature, with the goal of introducing the audience to the work of an exceptional artist whose art in recent decades has become an enigma—mysterious, difficult to access, and experienced only by a few initiates.

Over 130 works in the exhibition display the evolution of Vukadinov’s work: from traditional academic painting, mastered in Prof. Nenko Balkanski’s painting studio, and his early manifestations of impressionistic plein air and visual naturalism; through his path of discoveries in the encaustic technique and the symbolism of color, which led him to transcendent aesthetics and his characteristic style; to the deconstruction of forms and volumes in his late cycles, where color dominates over form and subject.

A bilingual album has been prepared for the exhibition, which for the first time comprehensively presents the artist’s creative path, from his student works to his late paintings. The catalogue includes some 400 works that show the evolution of one of the most significant Bulgarian artists and reveal his achievements over the various stages of his artistic career.

The exhibition and the accompanying publication are the work of the team of the Sofia City Art Gallery in partnership with Prof. Axinia Džurova, art historian and long-time researcher of Ivan Vukadinov’s work. They include works from state, municipal, and private collections from Sofia and around Bulgaria, and have been made possible through the assistance of the artist’s family, as well as with the financial support of the Sofia Municipality and the Ministry of Culture.