site.btaPainter Rumen Gasharov in BTA Interview: Today We Are Victims of Chalgalisation, Culturelessness and Pseudo-nationalism

"Some time ago, the “people's favourite” show [TISP leader Slavi Trifonov’s TV show] informed us that while the samurai code is driven by honour, the small-minded Bulgarian only cares about profit," Gasharov said, adding that despite that, good writers, poets and artists are a force he trusts in.

A few weeks ago, his exhibition Brutto - Netto opened at the Sofia City Art Gallery. It is one of the reasons why the painter is sending off 2022 in good spirits.

Q: Mr. Gasharov, how are your feeling sending off 2022?

A: At the beginning of December, my exhibition Brutto - Netto opened at the Sofia City Art Gallery (SCAG). The director of the gallery, Mrs. Adelina Fileva, and the curatorial team worked for a long time to arrange this exhibition. They gathered paintings from 23 galleries in the country, including the National Art Gallery, SCAG’s collection, the Art Gallery in Gabrovo, private collections, and my studio. The team managed to prepare a wonderful bilingual catalogue. For all this, I am very grateful to Mrs. Fileva, her team, and the restorers. 

I received many congratulations for the exhibition from friends and strangers, so I’m sending off 2022 in good spirits.

Q: Did you face any surprises and challenges this year, and what were the biggest ones?

A: I had a broken leg all summer and have been in a wheelchair ever since. But let me remind you: Renoir has a photo in front of his easel, in a wheelchair, and his paintbrushes are strapped to his arm because he had arthritis.

Q: Are you optimistic about Bulgarian culture?

A: In the Museum of Arts and Crafts in Troyan [central Bulgaria] there are pictures of the different craft guilds: the potters, the shoemakers, the cloth weavers, etc. Each guild had a statute. And this was during the Revival! Some time ago, the “people's favourite” show informed us that while the samurai code is driven by honour, the small-minded Bulgarian only cares about profit. Today, we are victims of chalgalisation, culturelessness and pseudo-nationalism.

Q: Do you believe in the power of the intellectual elite of the nation?

A: Elite sounds arrogant - many think so, not just me.  Every nation has good writers, poets, artists, etc. They are a force I trust in! 

Q: What are your expectations for 2023?

A: Ukraine to emerge victorious from the war against Putin!

Q: What do you wish to Bulgarians for the New Year?

A: Back in the day, the rulers gave speeches in front of the "entire Bulgarian people". Today, I wish my friends and relatives a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Rumen Gasharov was born in Plovdiv, but he has spent most of his life in Sofia. He was one of the first students at the newly established High School of Fine Arts. In 1962 he graduated from the Nikolay Pavlovich Higher Institute of Visual Arts (the Academy of Art) in Sofia. Ever since, he has been an active participant in artistic life. Over the years he has put on fifteen solo exhibitions and presented his works in various general art shows in Bulgaria and abroad. 

Gasharov received first prize for painting in the first international exhibition Humour and Satire in Painting – Gabrovo ’77 for his painting Prognosis. In 1984 he was awarded the annual prize of the Union of Bulgarian Artists (UBA). In 1987, he was awarded the “Sofia Prize” for his anniversary exhibition from 1986, and two years later received the first prize for painting at the national exhibition "100 Years of Sofia - Capital of Bulgaria" his Sofia - Triptych.