NINA PANCHEVA-
KIRKOVA
BIO
I love doing illustrations not only because I love books. I love doing illustrations not only because I love painting in all its varieties and techniques, the colours and the splashing paint. I love doing illustrations not only because I remember the first books my mother used to read me through their illustrations - pictures that have turned into precious memories for me. I love doing illustrations also because I believe they are a unique way to think about books and the world, to explore theses books and to share these discoveries with the most open minds - the children's minds. In this sense I can say I have the greatest job of all.
...Otherwise I'm based in Woking, Surrey, UK, and work as an illustrator for more than 10 years. I had an 'old-fashioned' education in fine art where we explored traditional techniques used in painting, graphics and sculpture. Then I moved to my Master's degree where we learned Fine Art in a new way, in contemporary context and trying to find our own artistic 'voices'. I guess in my work you can find traces of both.
I work as an illustrator for books, prints, press and other communications visuals, and of course, for children's books.
EDUCATION
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2011 - 2015 - PhD Fine Art, Winchester School of Art (University of Southampton)
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2010 - 2011 - MA of Fine Arts - distinction, Winchester School of Art, UK (University of Southampton)
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2002 - 2006 - BA of Fine Arts - distinction, Academy of Fine Art, Plovdiv, Bulgaria
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1996 - 2002 - Specialized High School for Fine Arts 'Tsanko Lavrenov', Plovdiv, Bulgaria
Selected clients include: World by Shotlglass, USA; Creative Cushion, UK; Hotel Hilton, Bulgaria; Hotel Radisson, Bulgaria;
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS (*solo shows marked by asterisk)
2021 - Las Laguna Art Gallery - shortlisted for final exhibition, Laguna Beach, CA, USA
2020 - ING Discerning Eye - shortlisted for final exhibition
2020 - Painter-Stainers Art Sale - The Lynn Foundation, online exhibition
2020 - Sunny Art Prize - shortlisted for final exhibition, London, UK
2020 - The Collective, A Way Gallery, Canada
2017 - ArtPrize - Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA
2017 - Lynn Painter-Stainers Prize - Mall Galleries, London; Guildford House Gallery
2016 - So Close, So Far - National Palace of Culture, Sofia, Bulgaria
2016 - Utopia:Dystopia - exhibition, part of FaB16 festival of contemporary art, Bath, UK
2014 - Portraits of the opera singer Boris Christoff as part of the event dedicated to his anniversary, Bulgarian Cultural Institute, London.
2014 - "Image-Text-Object", exhibition of PhD students, Hartley Library, Southampton
2013 - RAW, exhibition of PhD students from Winchester School of Art, 5th Base Gallery, London
2013 - "Painting as Research", The Paint Club, Beaconsfield, London
2013 - Postgraduate Research Exhibition, the Winchester Gallery, Winchester School of Art
2012 - *'Utopias', The Y, Leicester
2012 - 'Roy's Salon Tea Party', the Fountain, London
2012 - Winchester School of Art Graduate Research Exhibition
2012 - 'Mull It Over', Brighton
You can see Nina's paintings at
GET IN TOUCH
ninapancheva at gmail.com