Artist Tanya Atanasova
Tanya Atanasova, the 1st place winner in the 1st Edition of the Boynes Emerging Artist Award, is a contemporary realist painter born in Bulgaria and currently living in Belgium. She earned a Bachelor of Applied Arts (Ceramics) in her native Bulgaria, before expanding her artistic studies in Belgium and Madrid.
“Smokey Eyes, Joëlle”// Oil on Belgian Linen
“Joelle, she is a very very talented young artist, but she doesn’t know it yet. She’s very fragile and sensitive of nature, always “hiding” behind her make up and cigarettes. She is a good friend and good person to talk art with. “ - Tanya Atanasova
When asked what inspired her to create work, Atanasova said “I believe, if you carry creative genes, creativity runs like a program and always finds its way to the world in a creative language/expression. In my case it is painting and crafting things. In that sense, I have been creating art since I was a child, it didn’t really come as a conscious decision to me, but rather as a way of expressing myself. So in a way everything inspires me constantly. Nature inspires me a lot, but also people and psychology, people’s stories. Like a real Balkan person, I’m very social and very verbal, so people’s stories really touch me and often make me think about new work.”
“Lou”// Oil on Belgian Linen
“Lou is a French friend of mine, who works at a Historical Museum in Brussels. So her day is pretty much assembling antique vessels all the time. In the weekends she is a part of a Roman reenactment group, where she reincarnates as the wife of a Roman soldier. The dress and jewelry she wore for the photoshoot are original Roman attributes. She’s living in the Dutch speaking part of Belgium and it is fascinating to me when trying to puzzle all of her together.“ - Tanya Atanasova
In the past five years Atanasova has been working on a large series of portraits of people she knows very well. She prefers to focus on people who have played an important role in her life or have been an inspiration to her with their talents. The Series itself is titled “You My Dear” and is a personal project dedicated to saying “Thank You” to all of the people that have stood by her side and given her their friendship.
“Guillaume”// Oil on Belgian Linen
“Guillaume is a local celebrity. He is a very good singer and a harmonica player and has a quite well known duo with his brother Mathiew. They are both brilliant musicians and cabaret-like entertainers.” - Tanya Atanasova.
According to Atanasova, knowing the models and being interested in their psychology, she wanted to capture more than just their outer appearance. Atanasova wanted to become an intermediary between them and the viewer, building a connection that hopefully goes beyond painted realism.
“Michel With Octopus”// Oil on Belgian Linen
“Michel is sort of an artistic octopus, but he has a lot more than eight tentacles! He has quite a high ADHD percentage, which makes him not being able to concentrate on only one thing in life – he gets bored very quickly and so he has to constantly learn new skills. So, he is an excellent chef, car mechanic and a hairdresser, he also is a great entertainer (all kids from the previous generation know him from children’s tv shows), a wonderful musician and a producer!” - Tanya Atanasova
Atanasova further explained her work by saying “…My gaze is directed into the story of every character, I create their identity and unique complexity by using attributes that characterize them. Looking at the paintings should be like taking a glimpse into the characters’ diary or reading a page out of their biography.”
“Michel”//Oil on Belgian Linen
“Yes, he is very dear to me, Michel. I have used him in several of my works, just being inspired by his creativity! He is multi-talented and ideas constantly fly out of his nest!” - Tanya Atanasova
Although Atanasova does have understanding and knowledge of acrylics (and teach acrylic classes), within her practice she uses oils. In her artistic practice, she uses a lot of old and modern techniques to create the different layers of a personality, which she feels is best achieved through utilising oils.
To check out more of Tanya Atanasova’s work :