Sidonia Atanasova (1909 - 1994)
The fifty-four wood engravings that we have arranged in our showroom at 30 Marin Drinov Street in Sofia follow the chronology of their creation from "Still Life with Leather", 1936, "At Work", 1937, to the artist's last works: "Rila Monastery", 1979, "Balchik - The Palace" 1970s and "Bachkov Monastery", 1980. Each of the works is worthy of focusing the viewer's attention. Even an ordinary amateur with a zoom on their phone can enjoy the miniature elements created by the author. Access to the artist's archive gave us a chance to touch her soul. Among the most interesting documents that we publish is a "personal archive", with handwritten descriptions: biographical data, participation in exhibitions, important works, awards received, etc. A fine and delicate nature, Sidonia has a hard time dealing with the vicissitudes of life. Joys and sorrows, love and disappointments, at one point are complemented by the political repression that leaves the young woman without a livelihood, thrown out of the teaching profession in 1946. She finds support in art, dedicating her entire life to it. Following her mission, she also adapts to the socialist reality, through which she passes a large part of her life and creative path. The 1970s of the 20th century are marked by two of the most important events in her professional career. In 1972, a monographic essay by Dora Kamenova was published, and in 1979, the Union of Bulgarian Artists organized the first and only solo exhibition, which was shown in Sofia and Pleven. We are aware that with the current exhibition Sidonia Atanasova (1909-1994) at Loran Gallery and the accompanying small catalog, we remain indebted to the legacy of one of the great ladies in Bulgarian art. We hope to be among the initiators in the coming years to organize a major national retrospective exhibition and publish a contemporary monograph on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of his birth.
