Vladimir Berberov was born in Sofia, Bulgaria in
June, 1980. As a child he developed a fascination with all things
surreal and strange, and later found inspiration from the works of Salvador Dali and Max
Ernst. 
The painting of Vladimir Berberov
Vladimir Berberov belongs to the new generation of Bulgarian visual artists. He presents us with a very wide gamut of paintings, with qualities of expressivity as well as versatility and virtuosity in his drawing techniques. The combination of expressive ability and drawing facility places him in the category of painters who are open to modern visual-arts movements, but who also do not disregard the basic and timeless principles of visual-arts creation (design, linear and atmospheric perspective, harmonious conjoining of color contrasts).
His purely pictorial creations (ink drawings, water colors, crayon-pastels, etc.) are distinguished for their solidly grounded expressionistic synthesis of feeling which are dominant in his representational presentation of sites in both the traditional-provincial and in the cosmopolitan developed countries (water color paintings of the harbor of Sozopol, ink drawings of Bulgarian neighborhoods, but also urban high-rise buildings in the neo-baroque architectural style in his "Downtown 1, San Francisco"). The dominant impression, namely that this painter who uses with ease, virtuosity, but also passion all the tones of black and white but who is simultaneously a remarkable colorist, is totally confirmed if one places vis-a-vis one another and in juxtaposition the inks having the theme of the lighthouse and the harbor of Sozopol with the acrylic-on-pasteboard "San Francisco Downtown 2" and "Sunset." Both in the themes from Bulgaria and those from the new World, Vladimir Berberov succeeds in painting the depicted sites while consolidating in this way the basic expressionistic perceptions according to which there is nothing in the tangible, in the visible world that does not radiate not only electromagnetic light but its own psychic energies as well. In his more advanced pictorial or non-representational (abstract) compositions, Berberov successfully dares to provoke interest and literally a sympathetic attraction by using "unorthodox colors in ... orthodox designs" (female nudes, murals of psychedelic compositions). Dark blue and purple tones mixed with bright orange and pale colors in the solidly grounded sitting figure of a female. What we have here are "subversive" chromatic conjunctions that attest to the search for a different tomorrow. In conclusion, we would say that Vladimir Berberov is conscientiously following a steady course, with creations that are favorably predisposed toward nationalistic approaches, but a course having roots in the timeless principles of the visual arts and also in persuasively bold openings toward innovative creations, by way of his audacious chromatic conjunctions.
Petros Maktis
Journalist - Peintre Membre de L' Association des Journalistes de la Presse Athenienne de la Confederation Internatione des Journalistes (Bruxelles) of the Visual Arts Chamber of Greece and the International Art Association (UNESCO)
"It seems that it
is precisely the painting which is the nucleus which concentrates
in itself the most intimate, the most dearly cherished experiences
of the artist in his contact with fine art. Although the particular
impulse to create one or another painting may come through different
paths: though direct impressions, through memories, or by way
of his imagination-in any of the cases a painting of Vladimir
Berberov is an independent plastic world with its own laws and
logic. In it the delicate and tender emotion is percolated through
the filter of the careful, keen and gradual consideration of the
artistic task, the building up of the form, the wanted color harmony,
the special proportions and of the compositional organization.
It is no accident that some of his works are not defined in particular
as to any definite theme or plot. The artist is after richness
and ambiguity of his suggestions as well as multi-layer associations.
He achieves a sophisticated system of hints and allusions of the
forms, silhouettes and blurs which in some cases acquire an almost
crystal structure, whereas in others they seem to be ready to
melt away any moment in the diffusion of the artistic "sfumato".
Vladimir Berberov possesses a definite affinity for the visual,
tangible qualities of the objective world, for the patina, for
the texture as an important feature of the artistic plastic and
image. The local color is harmonized with the subtle background,
the unostentatious geometric patterns are supplemented by the
free interlacing of organic forms."
-Art Magazine, Bulgaria, 2002 |
