ARTIST STATEMENT

I was born in Bulgaria in 1961. My father, a self-taught artist and theatre director, inspired my love of the arts. I studied Landscape Architecture and designed parks, rich in color, flowers, and spaces for recreation and meditation. In 1990, I came to America, married, and received Master’s degrees in Religious Studies and Library and Information Science, studying and preserving South Slavic (Bulgarian) medieval manuscripts. My doctoral study revealed "the secret history" of the Balkans during the Ottoman rule (1393-1878) by studying manuscript marginal notes.

            After graduation in 2008, I started to re-create and re-interpret Byzantine and South Slavic iconography and manuscript illuminations, and to educate Western audiences about the simple and meaningful illuminations of Slavic scribes by using gold and metallic inks and acrylic paints, embellished by Swarovski crystals. The illuminations reflect the joy of spirituality, emphasizing the themes of the Light within and without and the Tree of Life as major inspiration.

            Sacred art has always enthralled me. During graduate and doctoral studies, I worked in the areas of preservation and research of Slavic medieval manuscripts. This work led to recreation of their beautiful illuminations and iconography. My sacred illuminations reach deep into the roots of ancient, medieval, and modern spiritual traditions and are nourished by my life of prayer and study of sacred texts in the living Orthodox Church. The “dark night of the soul” of loosing my parents inspired me to look with a “from above perspective” to perceive the larger picture of my life in relationship with God, humankind, and nature, and to discover the ancient Tree of Life concept. Overall, I seek to portray the Divine Light from within and without through the use of gold paint and Swarovski crystals. I pray that my work will inspire others and illuminate their minds and hearts in our gloomy world.