Exhibition of Paintings by Georgi Klisurski (1949–2020)
The ‘13 Centuries of Bulgaria’ National Endowment Fund presents artist Georgi Klisarski, who lived and worked in Samokov for many years.
Georgi Klisarski was born in Samokov on 26 March 1949. He graduated from the local secondary school and, in 1975, was appointed as a teacher of fine arts in the town of Ihtiman, where he moved with his wife Valya and their two children, Evgeni and Elena.
Throughout his life, he always had the support of his parents. His family was not wealthy and he had to educate himself without taking additional lessons. By persistence and demonstrating his great ambition, he managed to prepare successfully for his admission as a student.
Later, as a teacher, he became a favourite of the students, inspiring young people and training them in additional extracurricular creative activities such as aeromodelling.
In 1979, he was nominated for the position of ‘artist’ by the town council, responsible for the production of all local events and performances. In this regard, his daughter stated: ‘I remember the huge number of snowflakes and Fathers Christmases, which he used to cut out with a red-hot tool and then he painted them. During this period, he began to produce oil paintings on canvas, made his own self-portraits, and created his favourite painting, which he never took down off the wall of his room, and which he showed in several exhibitions—my portrait at the age of 10.’
At the age of 35, Klisarski began to produce masterful works in the intarsia technique, depicting Rila Monastery, scenes from Ivan Vazov’s ‘Under the Yoke’, and famous architectural sites from the Bulgarian National Revival epoch such as Samokov’s Great Fountain and the Mosque. He devoted a particular place to his output for children, creating unique veneer portrayals of favourite children’s characters. To this day, these works, which he donated, may be seen on the walls of kindergartens and schools, including the ‘Slantse [Sun] – 1879’ Community Centre in Ihtiman. Simultaneously, the artist created pen and ink drawings, and woodcarvings.
Following the sociopolitical changes of 1989, Georgi Klisarski continued to work as a teacher, while becoming more prolific in producing oil paintings on canvas. His favoured themes related to the natural features of the region; he loved recreating the mountains, forests, the Rila lakes, flora, and seascapes.
‘He loved to depict Revival houses and urban landmarks—Samokov’s Great Fountain and the Mosque, the Turkish Bath in Ihtiman. A wonderful highlight in his oeuvre are paintings of sunflowers. He painted several frescoes: a huge wall in the Technical School of Economics in Ihtiman; the wall bordering the main road in the village of Mirovo near Ihtiman…’, his daughter Elena continued her story.
His works quickly became noticed and were highly appreciated by artists and specialists.
Georgi Klisarski unexpectedly left this world on 24 February 2020, at the age of 70.
The ‘13 Centuries of Bulgaria’ National Endowment Fund is honoured to present, at the Sarafs’ House, its regional centre in Samokov, paintings by Georgi Klisarski from Yavor Avramov’s collection, shown in the ‘Landscapes of Samokov’ exhibition.
The ‘13 Centuries of Bulgaria’ National Endowment Fund presents artist Georgi Klisarski, who lived and worked in Samokov for many years.
Georgi Klisarski was born in Samokov on 26 March 1949. He graduated from the local secondary school and, in 1975, was appointed as a teacher of fine arts in the town of Ihtiman, where he moved with his wife Valya and their two children, Evgeni and Elena.
Throughout his life, he always had the support of his parents. His family was not wealthy and he had to educate himself without taking additional lessons. By persistence and demonstrating his great ambition, he managed to prepare successfully for his admission as a student.
Later, as a teacher, he became a favourite of the students, inspiring young people and training them in additional extracurricular creative activities such as aeromodelling.
In 1979, he was nominated for the position of ‘artist’ by the town council, responsible for the production of all local events and performances. In this regard, his daughter stated: ‘I remember the huge number of snowflakes and Fathers Christmases, which he used to cut out with a red-hot tool and then he painted them. During this period, he began to produce oil paintings on canvas, made his own self-portraits, and created his favourite painting, which he never took down off the wall of his room, and which he showed in several exhibitions—my portrait at the age of 10.’
At the age of 35, Klisarski began to produce masterful works in the intarsia technique, depicting Rila Monastery, scenes from Ivan Vazov’s ‘Under the Yoke’, and famous architectural sites from the Bulgarian National Revival epoch such as Samokov’s Great Fountain and the Mosque. He devoted a particular place to his output for children, creating unique veneer portrayals of favourite children’s characters. To this day, these works, which he donated, may be seen on the walls of kindergartens and schools, including the ‘Slantse [Sun] – 1879’ Community Centre in Ihtiman. Simultaneously, the artist created pen and ink drawings, and woodcarvings.
Following the sociopolitical changes of 1989, Georgi Klisarski continued to work as a teacher, while becoming more prolific in producing oil paintings on canvas. His favoured themes related to the natural features of the region; he loved recreating the mountains, forests, the Rila lakes, flora, and seascapes.
‘He loved to depict Revival houses and urban landmarks—Samokov’s Great Fountain and the Mosque, the Turkish Bath in Ihtiman. A wonderful highlight in his oeuvre are paintings of sunflowers. He painted several frescoes: a huge wall in the Technical School of Economics in Ihtiman; the wall bordering the main road in the village of Mirovo near Ihtiman…’, his daughter Elena continued her story.
His works quickly became noticed and were highly appreciated by artists and specialists.
Georgi Klisarski unexpectedly left this world on 24 February 2020, at the age of 70.
The ‘13 Centuries of Bulgaria’ National Endowment Fund is honoured to present, at the Sarafs’ House, its regional centre in Samokov, paintings by Georgi Klisarski from Yavor Avramov’s collection, shown in the ‘Landscapes of Samokov’ exhibition.