site.btaArtist Turns Child Drawings into Wire Figures

Blanka Sperkova opened her exhibition Granny and Grandchild at the Czech Centre in Sofia Wednesday. The artist is known for her works in the media of animation, illustration, and jewellery made of wire. Until May 27, Bulgarian audiences will be able to see that the inspiration behind Sperkova's latest project is her granddaughter Marianka. The granny-granddaughter pair proves that the age gap between generations does not matter when great imagination is a factor.

Sperkova told BTA that the project was started during the pandemic, when she was unable to see her grandkids or their drawings. During the periods of lockdown, she was sent photos of the drawings, which she started interpreting as sculptures made of coloured wire.

Blanka Sperkova has worked with wire for over 60 years. Her first pieces utilized a traditional Slovak wire-processing craft, however later she developed her own method of work that only uses her fingers and no other tools. After the Velvet Revolution, she discovered that her art had gained numerous admirers in Europe, America, and Japan.

Sperkova smiles, when she explains the pun in her last name: sperk means jewel both in Czech and Slovak. "So, my last name was the reason I had to try and make at least a couple of jewels."

Blanka Sperkova was born in 1948 in Banska Bystrica, present-day Slovakia. She studied puppet art at the Academy of Theatrical Arts, Prague, as well as cartoon and puppet's film at the Academy of Applied Arts in Prague.

Sperkova can utilize the specific properties of wire "yarn" to make her art appear ethereal, transparent, and expressive. Her works have won many awards and appear in art collections across the world.