Stoyan Venev's Art Collection, town of Kaspichan

Overview

Stoyan Venev was born on September 21, 1904 in the village of Skrinyano, Kyustendil region. He graduated from the State Academy of Arts in Sofia in 1931.

After 1944, when the Communists came to power, Venev became a member of the Bulgarian Communist Party. He was awarded all possible honors that an artist could receive in socialist times. Stoyan Venev actively collaborates with the Bulgarian state newspapers and magazines, drawing proletarian political cartoons for them. Together with other Bulgarian artists, he worked on outlining the thematic directions in the development of Bulgarian art on the path of socialist realism. 

The artist's talent is manifested in two main genres: painting and graphics (caricature). An important feature of his creative style, which distinguishes him from other artists, is his amazing sense of humor and positive irony. The other distinction of the artist is that he emphasizes the Bulgarian features in his images, regardless of whether they are painted in traditional Bulgarian folk costumes or not.

There is a definition of "socialist realism in art", which is considered the main creative method in socialist art. According to the requirements of socialist realism, "the artist must focus on ordinary working people as the main driving force behind the revolutionary struggle of the proletariat for socialism and communism, for peace, brotherhood, and cooperation between peoples."

All these "elements" are present in the works of art of Stoyan Venev, so he can be defined as one of the brightest Bulgarian socialist artists.

The art gallery named after Stoyan Venev opened its doors in Kaspichan in 2011.