“The idea for the project "Ear Witness: Fifty Characters" originated from the challenge of visualizing the texts of Elias Canetti's book under the same title. The exhibition is being organized by the International Society "Elias Canetti" and the Ruse Art Gallery. This event is one of the first in connection with the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the birth of the world-famous writer, who spent the first six years of his life in the city of Ruse.
Elias Canetti manages to describe each character in short prose, deeply, comprehensively, and multi-layered. In most cases, the character becomes an obsession, growing into the grotesque. Readers may feel as though they are reflected in a distorted mirror, finding their fears, doubts, and a part of themselves in the characters described. Some may even recognize acquaintances in them.
The project serves as an opportunity for reflection and creative interpretation for the participating artists. What remains unsaid by the writer can be continued and developed by the artists. Initially, the artists approached the project with curiosity. After reading and approving the texts, they decided to work on them with ease. However, upon a second reading, Canetti's complexity became more apparent, making it challenging to extract the characters in terms of signs and meaning.
In "The Ear Witness - 50 Characters" project, the form and structure were established as mandatory parameters. All works are vertically arranged and framed in wooden frames resembling screens. There were no restrictions on the choice of technique, allowing for diverse approaches and realizations. Some artists recreated individual characters, while others summarized them. Regardless of the traditional field of expression, participants freely interpreted in various techniques such as collage, mixed media, computer graphics, traditional painting, and drawing. Some artists even used silver foil, whose mirrored surface symbolizes introspection provoked by the literary prose used.
The participants' works resemble open pages of a book, inviting not only those familiar with the stories but also viewers willing to accept the challenge of connecting with the writer Elias Canetti through the created works.”
Curated by Elena Velikova
Parcitipeted artists: Andrey Daniel, Monika Romenska, Yanko Nenov, Dimitar Cholakov, Yordan Kisyov, Vihroni Popnedelev, Tsvetan Krastev, Maya Kubratova, Krasimira Kirilova, Branko Nikolov, Svilen Blazhev, Zlatka Stoykova, Tanya and Georgi Pasevi, Georgi Georgiev, Irena Parashkevova, Nikolay Buzov, Violeta Radkova and Veledin Marinov.