On April 15, 2025, the exhibition "Bestiary" by Prof. Viktor Paunov will open in the exhibition hall of the Triangle Tower of Serdika, which will remain there until the celebration of Children's Day on June 1, 2025. Deep underground, where the memory and traces of the history of our capital from the most distant times are preserved, in addition to one of the interesting preserved and modernly exhibited archaeological sites, there is also one of the youngest exhibition halls, which is already establishing itself among the recognizable places to meet with contemporary Bulgarian art. It is one of the many branches of the Regional History Museum - Sofia and for about ten years now various exhibitions have been held there, with one of the main missions of the museum being to support the presentation of contemporary authors. The museum is an annual partner and host of events such as the Paper Art Fest, DA Fest and many other similar large-scale, regularly held events. Among them are the exhibitions of the Biennial of Bulgarian Illustration in 2022 and 2024, whose focus is primarily on presenting young authors working in the field of illustration.
Without a doubt, the presentation of an established artist like Prof. Viktor Paunov this year stands out and is the most important artistic event in the program of the Regional History Museum - Sofia, and probably in the capital as well. Although he is among the most famous, recognized and highly regarded contemporary illustrators, in recent years his original works have been relatively rarely shown in exhibitions. The most popular characters from the past have not been shown to a wide audience for a long time. In the current exhibition, many new characters, for the first time, leave the pages of the publications for which they were created and have coexisted in the underground exhibition spaces on Maria Luiza Blvd. for more than a month.
The reason for organizing this exhibition is the publication of "Bestiary" - a new, author's book by Prof. Viktor Paunov. As is clearly stated in the subtitle, it is a book for consideration. It features selected examples from some of the earliest editions illustrated by Prof. Viktor Paunov, characters from his most popular books, those awarded with awards, shown in competitions and exhibitions. Works from the 1980s to the present day are included. The author's goal is not to present all the editions illustrated by him. In it, unforgettable, emblematic characters from children's books, bizarre creatures, griffins, dragons meet extremely precise, reliable illustrations of fish, mammals, birds and live a new life carried away by the present visual story. The exhibition is also titled as the book. It provides the opportunity to touch the original illustrations, as well as to recall the suffering of some of these beasts. The exhibition "Bestiary" displays over 230 selected original illustrations, published in various editions over the past more than 40 years.
The exhibition is not retrospective in the classical sense. Unlike most such exhibitions, it does not chronologically trace the artist's creative path or development. As the title suggests, it places the emphasis on animals. They are strongly represented as the main object of research and transformation in the work of Prof. Viktor Paunov. The exhibition, as well as the book, reveal the diversity of possible approaches to this vast topic, through selected examples from the 1980s to the present day. In 1994, Prof. Viktor Paunov began working as a lecturer at the National Academy of Arts. He made an irreplaceable contribution to the development not only of the specialty "Illustration and Book Layout" as a lecturer and head of the department, but also of the entire institution. At different times, he held important and responsible positions, such as Deputy Rector of the Faculty of Fine Arts and Deputy Rector for Academic Affairs. This does not interfere with his own professional development and he continues to maintain good partnerships with many of the leading publishing houses in Bulgaria such as "Prosveta", "Panorama", "Prozorets", "Otechestvo", "Bulgarian Artist", "Enthusiast", "Narodna Kultura", "Zhanet 45", "Dr. Ivan Bogorov", "Kolibri", "Nike", "Zlatostruy", "Kolkhida", "ATEA", "Emas", "Zlatorogy", "Vilix", "Profizdat", "Svyat", "Hristo Botev", "Zemya", "Damyan Yakov", "Albor", "Komo", "University Publishing House", etc. Among them, the long-standing joint work with the publishing house "Trud", which also supports the publication of the current author's book by Prof. Viktor Paunov - "Bestiary", stands out.
The period of the exhibition is consistent with several events, for each of which different activities are organized, aimed at a wide range of visitors of all ages. The exhibition "Bestiary" opens on April 16, 2025 by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Veneta Handzhiyska-Yankulova - Director of RIM - Sofia. Guests of the event are the rector of the National Academy of Arts, colleagues of the author - teachers, illustrators, many of his students. On April 23 - World Book Day, the author's edition of Prof. Viktor Paunov is presented at the National Academy of Arts. On May 17, as part of the program for the European Night of the Muses, a meeting with the author is announced in the exhibition hall. Unlike the opening of the exhibition and the presentation of the book, this event is distinguished by the opportunity for visitors who accidentally find themselves in the exhibition hall to get to know the artist, to experience the process of creating some of the characters they have seen in books illustrated by him. June 1 - Children's Day, is the last day of the presentation of the "Bestiary" exhibition in the Triangle Tower of Serdica, where as part of the festive program proposed by the museum, children can view selected publications for children illustrated by Prof. Viktor Paunov, as well as the new book "Bestiary" and immerse themselves in the vast world of their own imagination, trying to create their own "beast". Although the exhibition ends then, this does not exhaust the meetings of the youngest with the artist's characters. As part of the museum's summer educational program, for several weeks, a series of groups of students have the opportunity to participate in a similar educational activity, as the artist agrees to leave selected original illustrations for its implementation.
The exhibition "Bestiary" provides an irreplaceable opportunity for all admirers of the work of Prof. Viktor Paunov, all colleagues - illustrators, art historians, publishers, to view selected original illustrations and learn interesting facts about the artist's work. Despite his impressive biography, the artist is far from being subject to any vanity or thirst for attention. Fortunately, the exhibition, as well as all organized accompanying events, aroused deserved and expected interest, both among the professional community and among other visitors. The author of the hundreds of animals inhabiting the exhibition hall for more than a month with pleasure and fascination, exceeding ordinary teaching skills, each time tells new and new curious stories related to his interesting and diverse profession.
Author: Hristina Grozdanova
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