The photos of the lot are informative and indicative, and cannot provide a highly detailed view of the object from all angles. We recommend a careful physical inspection of the lot before bidding.
The photos of the lot are informative and indicative, and cannot provide a highly detailed view of the object from all angles. We recommend a careful physical inspection of the lot before bidding.
The painting "Rhodopi" is an artwork created in the mature years of Lika Yanko, when she works in a traditional painting technique with oil paints on canvas. It was bought personally from the artist, from her studio, as a gift for a high school graduate - the daughter of a famous family of Bulgarian actors. From the moment the artwork was purchased, the artwork has not left the home of its owners in Sofia. The composition is divided into three levels. In the upper part, Rhodope women are depicted in chevron-orange folk costumes - a symbol of the beautiful Rhodope song. Below them are depicted fragments of Rhodope architecture and the beauty of nature. A self-portrait is placed in the lower register, with a flower in her hair and to her right - a portrait of a girl. The artwork is an extraordinary piece of Lika Yanko's entire work. She presents all the characteristic features of her artistic creativity – the primary power of color, conventionality and syntheticity of images and an inimitable visual language. In the 1960s, Lika Yanko worked in the field of classical painting techniques on canvas. In 1962, the painting "Self-Portrait with a Dog" provoked criticism from Union of Artists, which caused the author to isolate herself from the official artistic life for a long time. From the mid-1960s, she began experimenting with the texture of the canvas by layering large amounts of oil paint and literally modeling the painting surface. In the same period, she began to work in the collage technique, which is recognizable in Bulgarian art. On the white background of the canvas, she glues colored stones, glass, beads, which are contoured by hemp braided ropes.
Lika Yanko was born in Sofia on March 19, 1928 as Evangeliia Lazar Grabova in the family of Lazar Yankov Grabova - an Albanian public figure and chairman of the Union of Albanian Cultural Societies in Bulgaria. She studied at the French College in Sofia, where she got to understand impressionism and post-impressionism, which later had a strong influence on her work. In 1946, she was admitted to the Art Academy, majoring in "Painting" under professors Dechko Uzunov and Iliya Petrov, but did not graduate. Her first solo exhibition was in 1967 in Sofia, but it was closed prematurely. Lika Yanko continued to paint, but did not exhibit her canvases until 1981. In the mid-1970s, her paintings began to be bought by foreign embassies and received high praise from European gallerists. Throughout her life, Lika Yanko held 7 solo exhibitions. At the end of her life, she donated 82 canvases to Sofia City Gallery and 100 to the National Gallery. (S.N.)"
Dimensions
width 45 cm, height 110 cm
Description
oil and sand on canvas, signed, dated and titled on the back, in black, "Лика Янко, Rodopi, (19)70"
Dating
1970
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
For clarifications regarding the bidding procedure, hammer price costs, guarantee, payment, and collection terms for the winning lot, we recommend carefully reading/re-reading the Bidding Regulations.
For additional information regarding the lot and the auction, please contact the Art Consultants Department.
Detalii
The painting "Rhodopi" is an artwork created in the mature years of Lika Yanko, when she works in a traditional painting technique with oil paints on canvas. It was bought personally from the artist, from her studio, as a gift for a high school graduate - the daughter of a famous family of Bulgarian actors. From the moment the artwork was purchased, the artwork has not left the home of its owners in Sofia. The composition is divided into three levels. In the upper part, Rhodope women are depicted in chevron-orange folk costumes - a symbol of the beautiful Rhodope song. Below them are depicted fragments of Rhodope architecture and the beauty of nature. A self-portrait is placed in the lower register, with a flower in her hair and to her right - a portrait of a girl. The artwork is an extraordinary piece of Lika Yanko's entire work. She presents all the characteristic features of her artistic creativity – the primary power of color, conventionality and syntheticity of images and an inimitable visual language. In the 1960s, Lika Yanko worked in the field of classical painting techniques on canvas. In 1962, the painting "Self-Portrait with a Dog" provoked criticism from Union of Artists, which caused the author to isolate herself from the official artistic life for a long time. From the mid-1960s, she began experimenting with the texture of the canvas by layering large amounts of oil paint and literally modeling the painting surface. In the same period, she began to work in the collage technique, which is recognizable in Bulgarian art. On the white background of the canvas, she glues colored stones, glass, beads, which are contoured by hemp braided ropes.
Lika Yanko was born in Sofia on March 19, 1928 as Evangeliia Lazar Grabova in the family of Lazar Yankov Grabova - an Albanian public figure and chairman of the Union of Albanian Cultural Societies in Bulgaria. She studied at the French College in Sofia, where she got to understand impressionism and post-impressionism, which later had a strong influence on her work. In 1946, she was admitted to the Art Academy, majoring in "Painting" under professors Dechko Uzunov and Iliya Petrov, but did not graduate. Her first solo exhibition was in 1967 in Sofia, but it was closed prematurely. Lika Yanko continued to paint, but did not exhibit her canvases until 1981. In the mid-1970s, her paintings began to be bought by foreign embassies and received high praise from European gallerists. Throughout her life, Lika Yanko held 7 solo exhibitions. At the end of her life, she donated 82 canvases to Sofia City Gallery and 100 to the National Gallery. (S.N.)"
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
For clarifications regarding the bidding procedure, hammer price costs, guarantee, payment, and collection terms for the winning lot, we recommend carefully reading/re-reading the Bidding Regulations.
For additional information regarding the lot and the auction, please contact the Art Consultants Department.
Dimensions
width 45 cm, height 110 cm
Description
oil and sand on canvas, signed, dated and titled on the back, in black, "Лика Янко, Rodopi, (19)70"
