Sariev, Plovdiv
Pravdoliub Ivanov, Vikenti Komitski
Pravdoliub Ivanov was born 1964 in Plovdiv, Bulgaria. He lives and works in Sofia. He graduated from the National Art Academy, Sofia, Bulgaria, where he is currently a lecturer. In 1995 he became a Founder Member of the Institute of Contemporary Art – Sofia. Pravdoliub Ivanov has a strong presence on the international art scene.
In 2007, together with Ivan Moudov and Stefan Nikolaev he participated in Vessela Nozharova’s curatorial project “A Place You Have Never Been Before” – the Bulgarian official participation at the 52nd Venice Biennial. His works were also presented at the 4th Istanbul Biennial in 1995, Manifesta 3 in Ljubljana, Slovenia (2003), at the 14th Sydney Biennial, Australia (2004) and at the 4th Berlin Biennial (2006).
He has participated in big international shows such as: “In the Gorges of the Balkans”, Fridericianum Museum, Kassel, Germany; “Blut & Honig, Zukunft ist am Balkan”, Essl Collection, Klosterneuburg, Austria; “Who killed the Painting?, Works from the Block Collection”, Neues Museum Weserburg, Bremen, Germany; “No New Thing Under the Sun”, Royal Academy of Arts, London (2011); “Sport in Art”, Museum of Contemporary Art in Krakow, Poland (2012); “The Unanswered Question. İskele-2”, TANAS and Neuer Berliner Kunstverein, Berlin (2013); “Heaven and Hell From magic carpets to drones”, Villa Empain, Boghossian Foundation, Brussels (2015); “The Travellers”, Zachęta National Gallery of Art, Warsaw (2016), “The Restless Earth”, Triennale di Milano, curator Massimiliano Gioni (2017).
In 2019 Pravdoliub Ivanov had first museum solo exhibition “The Life of Others is Somehow Easier”, Arsenal Gallery, Poland, curator Monika Szewczyk.
Pravdoliub Ivanov’s works are part of collections such as: Sofia Art Gallery, ERSTE Bank, Austria; European Investment Bank, Luxembourg; European Patent Office, Munich, Sofia City Art Gallery, Vehbi Koc Foundation, Istanbul and Art Collection Telekom. Pravdoliub’s works have been reproduced in magazines such as Frieze, Flash Art, Kunstforum, Аrtforum etc., as well as in publications such as East Art Map and Show Time – The Most Influential Exhibitions of Contemporary Art.
Pravdoliub Ivanov is represented by Sariev Contemporary since 2011.
My simple ideas are a kind of a crossing point between the daily life and fantasy though I try to create works that belong to neither. I prefer to work in the field of the object, installation, photography and drawing, often utilising the circumstances and the challenges of the specific site and environment. The titles are important clue for understanding most of my works. – Pravdoliub Ivanov
The works of Pravdoliub Ivanov revolve around phenomena of spatiality in which norms are disrupted and trompe l’oeil effects are inserted into an everyday visual vocabulary. By intermingling public and private moments, the artist transfers private matters into the realm of the gallery or art space, tying in specific architectural tropes as he does so. Ivanov plays with irritating elements: he uses ironic gestures taken from mundane and incidental everyday situations to evoke a heightened awareness for routine encounters that might otherwise often go unnoticed. The juxtaposition of unusual objects and materials forms the basis for Ivanov’s installations, which generally tend to produce uncanny moments for their viewers. The paradoxical nature of being both attracted to and alienated from Ivanov’s art objects and installations gives rise to a state of cognitive dissonance; this makes it difficult to perceive his works of art as rational manifestations within space. His uncanny constructions of reality arouse the viewer’s desire for a detailed perception of our various everyday environments, which are usually given short shrift as we pass by all too quickly. Ivanov presses the “Pause” button on various everyday phenomena and creates ironic links of belonging. – Walter Seidl
Vikenti Komitski was born 1983 in Sofia. He lives and works in Berlin. Vikenti is working in a wide variety of media, including objects, videos, installations, drawings etc. His works often relate to theory and psychoanalysis, sometimes in a critical or ironic way. Komitski graduated Sculpture in NAA in Sofia and is currently enlisted in a Master program (Art In Context) in Universität der Künste, Berlin.
For the past years he had numerous solo shows and participations in Europe and the US. Some of his solo shows are: (upcoming) Sariev, Plovdiv (2020); “Sea level”, Fabienne Levy, Lausanne, Switzerland, Solo show (2020), solo presentation at LISTE, Basel with Sariev Gallery (2019); “Alle Vögel sind schon da”, WERK, Berlin (2018); “Nothing to be Lost” (with Francisco Montoya Cazarez), Goethe-Institut Bulgaria, Sofia (2018); “Lost but safe for the moment”, Narkissos Gallery, Bologna (2018); “Nevermind The Gap” in gallery Joey Ramone, Rotterdam (2017); “BASIC AND THE BEAST”, SARIEV Contemporary, Plovdiv (2017); “Update” in Krinzinger gallery, Vienna (2015), “Commodities Unplugged” in Sariev Project Space, Plovdiv (2014); “New Poor”, ICA, Sofia (2013); “Subjective Geography”, Sariev Contemporary, Plovdiv (2011); “1:200”, 0gms gallery, Sofia (2010); “No Image Available”, The Fridge, Sofia (2010), “#1”, Vaska Emanuilova Gallery, Sofia (2009).
Among the group shows he took part in are: “Open Art Files: Notes and footnotes”, Kapana gallery by Open Arts Foundation, Plovdiv, curator Vera Mlechevska (2019); On a Clear Day You Can See Forever, Goethe-Institut Bulgarien, Sofia, curator Carolina Lio (2018); “Shifting Layers”, Sofia City Art Gallery (2017); “Volatile Truths”, Rainbow Unicorn, Berlin (2017); “World at a Crossroads”, National Gallery of Iceland (2016); “Contemporary Icons; the art of spectacle”, 3rd Danube Biennial, Meulensteen Art Museum, Bratislava (2015); “Places of Transition”, frei_raum Q21, MuseumsQuartier Wien (2014); “Balkon Zum Balkan”, organized by Staatliche Kunsthalle Baden-Baden, (2014); “Go West!”, Muzeon Art Park, Moscow, special project for Moscow Young Art Biennial (2012); “Is It Free?”, NutureArt Gallery, New York (2012); “Together Again”, Radiator Gallery, New York (2012); “East Of Best”, Roodkapje, Rotterdam (2011); “An Exclusive Object of Art”, Dana Charkasi Gallery, Vienna (2011); “Entrepot”, Krinzinger Gallery, Vienna (2011); “Beyond Credit”, Antrepo 5,Istanbul (2010); “FQ Test”, GMG Gallery, Moscow (2010); “Photo I Photo You”, Calvert 22, London (2010); “Breaking Walls Building Networks”, Macedonian Museum of Contemporary Art, Thessaloniki (2010); “From Ideology to Economy”, Contemporary Bulgarian Art 20 Years Later, The State Central Museum of Contemporary History of Russia, Moscow (2009). He was a resident artist at FACE, Kiev and Arts Danube, Cetate in 2017, Quartier 21, Museums Quartier and in Krinzinger Projekte in 2014, Vienna, ISCP, New York in 2012, Futura, Prague in 2011 and SIM in Reykiavik in 2009. Komitski is the 2011 BAZA award winner.
His upcoming institutional solo show will take place at E-Werk, Freiburg in September 2020.
Vikenti Komitski is represented by Sariev Contemporary since 2011.
The artistic work of Vikenti Komitski revolves around everyday objects whose context and meaning are analyzed, scrutinized and transferred into a different reality. Komitski changes the nature of objets trouvés as well as of specifically chosen commodity goods that refer to the reality from which they were taken and in which they were originally used. However, Komitski’s use of ready-made principles is not only applied to objects but also to ideas. – Walter Seidl