Krum Damayanov's biography

Born 31.08.1937, Rakitovo, Region of Pazardzhik, Bulgaria

1962 Graduated from the Fine Arts Academy in Sofia with a degree in Decorative and Monumental Sculpture under Professor Lyubomir Dalchev. (Graduation work: The Relay, bronze, now exhibited in the grounds of the National Sports Academy in Sofia.)

Academic Work

1968 – Art teacher

1969 – 1994 Teacher, Associate Professor (1977), Professor (1986) at the Department of Drawing and Modelling, School of Architecture, Higher Institute of Architecture and Civil Engineering, Sofia

1994 – 2011 Professor at the Department of Sculpture, National Fine Arts Academy, Sofia

2016 Member of the Academy [Коя?]

WORKS

Memorial Ensembles

1977 The Defenders of Stara Zagora (The Banner of Samara), 50 m, concrete, granite, bronze, Stara Zagora, (as Lead Consultant)

1981 Bulgaria’s Founding Fathers, 50 m, concrete, granite, bronze, Shoumen, (as Lead Consultant). “ did not seek to portray the Bulgarian Khans and Tsars, but developed instead an ensemble of gestures and allegories reflecting their historic significance. Thus, Asparukh has been presented as a hawk looking ahead to new conquests.” (24 Hours, 11.10.2009)

1985 The Assens , Veliko Turnovo, (as Lead Consultant). In 1985, on the day the ensemble was unveiled, Krum Damyanov explained his approach to the subject: “Rising amidst the earthly rulers, pointing towards the sky, the sword becomes a cross.” [Източник?] “In my mind I have always pictured Bulgaria as the Virgin Orans, with arms outstretched to plead and protect, life-giving, the protectress of life.” (Krum Damyanov, 24 Hours, 11.10.2009) “I was gripped by terror until the very end, for I knew that if the Monument failed, that would be the fall of Turnovo itself. I had no doubt about it. If it spoiled the most iconic central view of the city, the disaster would be irreparable. And I can tell you, it was fiendishly difficult to blend it in, to fit all the elements along the existing axes of the hotel, the bridge, the Boruna quarter, the road leading up to the University—a given setting, a complicated frame of reference within which the monument had to find its own raison d’être.” [Източник?]

Monuments

1978 Banner of Peace (The Bells), 30 m, concrete, bronze, Sofia, (as Lead Consultant)

1985 Clock Tower (1000 Years Haskovo), 24 m, steel, granite, Haskovo

1989 Sophronius of Vratsa, 5 m, granite, bronze, marble, Vratsa

1993 Crucifix, 6 m, granite, marble, Kyustendil

Large-Scale Sculpture

1972 Icarus, marble, Sofia, (exhibited in the park outside the Sofia City Gallery)

1973 Orpheus, bronze, Kurdzhali, (put on display in 2007)

1974 Father and Son, bronze, Plovdiv

1977 The Monk of Mount Athos, stone, Rakitovo

1983 My Father, bronze, Rakitovo, Pleven

1983 1393, bronze, Rakitovo, (lost)

1986 Bull, granite, Konstanz, Germany

1988 Keys, granite, Plovdiv, (private collection)

1992 Bust of Elin Pelin, bronze, Sofia, (exhibited in the Boris Park)

1993 Bust of Georgi Asparukhov, granite, Sofia, (exhibited at the Gerena Stadium)

1995 The Cripple, ceramics, private collection

1995 Orpheus and Eurydice, ceramics, private collection

1995 Mother and Child, ceramics, USA

1995 My Mother, ceramics, USA

1995 Totem I & II, ceramics, USA

1996 Bull, ceramics, bronze, private collection

2001 Sts Cyril and Methodius, plaster, (unfinished)

2001 Keys, wood, metal, Geel, Belgium, Voeten Collection

2002 A Ton in the Air, stainless steel, Geel, Belgium, Voeten Collection

2003 Corrida, bronze, Geel, Belgium, Voeten Collection

2004 Saturnalia, wood, bronze, Geel, Belgium, Voeten Collection

2004 Angel, bronze, Sofia, in the grounds of The Bells monument (stolen and replaced with a mock figure of welded rain pipes)

2005 The Oath, ceramics, Sofia, (exhibited in the compound of the Foreign Ministry)

2005 Bull, bronze, Sofia, (exhibited in front of the Stock Exchange)

2007 Passage, ceramics, Cherven Bryag

2007 Keys, ceramics, Cherven Bryag

2007 The Prodigal Son, ceramics, Geel, Belgium, Voeten Collection

2009 St. Anthony, ceramics, Cherven Bryag

2010 Pilate [?], ceramics, Bratsigovo

2010 Salome, ceramics, Bratsigovo

2010 General Ivan Kolev (life-size equestrian figure, plaster, unexhibited)

2011 Apollo, plaster, (unfinished)

2012 Abraham’s Sacrifice, aluminium

2012 Bust of General Stilyan Kovachev, bronze, Rakitovo

2014 [?]Plachi Kamak (Stone  of Tears) Area, Bratsigovo

2015 Orpheus, bronze, Sofia, (exhibited in Sofia Airport underground station)

Recurring subject-matter has been at the focus of Damyanov’s creative endeavours over the years and has featured in multiple compositions and materials.

Decorative Sculpture

1966 Decorative latticework and wall pieces in a number of hotels in the Sunny Beach Resort

1969 Decorative wall pieces (copper) in the Sofia Hotel, Sofia, (with Valentin Starchev and Ivan Neshev; lost in subsequent refurbishment)

1975 Decorative piece (stone) in the Boyana State Residence, Sofia, (with others)

Designs for medals, orders and coins.

Small-Scale Sculpture

Numerous works owned by public galleries and private collectors in Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Norway, the Republic of Korea, the Netherlands and the USA. In Bulgaria: National Gallery, Sofia City Gallery, Modern Art Museum, galleries in Varna, Burgas, Veliko Turnovo, (Pompey] I & II, bronze, exhibited in front of the Turnovo Gallery, stolen) etc. Permanent exhibition in Bratsigovo; private collections in Sofia, Plovdiv, Sozopol). Damyanov’s body of small works features numerous heads and portraits, free-standing figures and compositions, such as The Cripple, Susana, Suricates, Bull Fighters, Cockerels, Pumas, Scorpions, horses, etc.

Exhibitions pre-1994

Numerous group exhibitions and art salons in Bulgaria and abroad; Biennale de Paris; (1969), the exhibition Examples of European Sculpture Today at the Wiener Secession in Vienna  and many other exhibitions in Moscow, Warsaw, India, Bucharest, the Netherlands, Germany and Budapest.

Exhibitions post-1994

1995 Sofia, Bulgaria, Sezoni Gallery, with Zlatka Dubova

1996 Passau, Germany, paintings

1996 Passau, Germany, international exhibition

1996 Sofia, Bulgaria, Raiko Alexiev Gallery

1998 Sofia, Bulgaria, Raiko Alexiev Gallery

1998 Paris, France

1999 Miami, USA, 47 bronzes and ceramics, (with Svetlin Rousev)

2001 Sofia, Bulgaria, Ciclop Gallery

2002 Paris, France, Cité international des arts

2002 Brussels, Belgium, Europalia

2003 Moret-sur-Loing, France, paintings and sculpture

2005 Moret-sur-Loing, France, sculpture, (with teachers and students of the National Fine Arts Gallery)

2005 Paris, France, Bulgarian Cultural Institute, Week of Foreign Culture in Paris, Exhibition of Bulgarian Art from the Belgian Voeten Collection

2007 Veliko Turnovo, Bulgaria

2007 Cherven Bryag, Bulgaria

2008 Sofia, Bulgaria, Foreign Art Gallery, (with Professor Dimitur Trendafilov)

2008 Plovdiv, Bulgaria, Autumn Days of the Arts

2009 Bratsigovo, Bulgaria, permanent open-air exhibition of ceramic sculpture

2010 Bratsigovo, Bulgaria

2011Sofia, Bulgaria, Arté Gallery, bronzes and paintings

2012 Paris, France, Bulgarian Cultural Institute, aluminium sculptures

2014 Sofia, Bulgaria, Nuance Gallery, sculpture and paintings

2015 Paris, France, Bulgarian Cultural Institute, 33 Self-Portraits of Contemporary Bulgarian Artists (April); Sofia, Bulgaria, Finesse Gallery (June)

2015 Sofia, Bulgaria, Arté Gallery, Small-Scale Pieces by Larger-Than-Life Sculptors, (with others)

2015 Sofia, Bulgaria, Sredets Gallery (with others)

2016 Group exhibitions at the Bulgarian Cultural Institutes in Berlin and Vienna

2017 Sofia, Bulgaria, Raiko Alexiev Gallery, Festival of Contemporary Ceramics, as Guest Participant of Honour to mark his 80th anniversary

2017, 6-27th October Sofia, Bulgaria, Raiko Alexiev Gallery, 80th Anniversary Exhibition, coloured aluminium

Participation in various solo and collective exhibitions on topical subjects

Sculptural Symposia

1968 Lindabrunn, Austria, Stonework

1969 Sankt Margarethen, Austria, Stonework

1970 Hainuvka, Poland, Woodwork

1971 Lindabrunn, Austria, Stonework

1988 Lindabrunn, Austria, Stonework

1996 Passau, Germany, Painting

1987 Seoul, Republic of Korea, Art Olympics, (12 m granite piece)

Krum Damyanov has been distinguished with numerous professional and state awards, including: Ivan Lazarov Monumental Sculpture Award (1978 and 1982); Contribution to Bulgarian Art Lifetime Achievement Award (Bulgarian Artists Union, 1999); Zlatno pero   Award (2004); Zlaten vek Award (Bulgarian Ministry of Culture, 2006); President’s Badge of Honour (2007); Fine Arts Award (2008); First Degree Order of Sts Cyril and Methodius (2008); Paisius of Hilendar State Prize (2009); First Degree Order of Stara Planina (2016); Zlaten vek Neckpiece (6 October 2017)

Dimitrov State Prize (1978); Red Labour Banner for overall achievement; Distinguished Artist honorary title (1981); three Ivan Lazarov Awards (1977, 1981 and 1986).