Un/noted first public presentation of the collection of the United Bulgarian Bank
/exhibition/
How different are the artists – because the talent is a unique phenomenon, the preferences of topics and motives, of colors - these are all a questions of emotional adjustment, of personal feeling and self-estimation. So different and incomparable are art collections. Especiially when they are created by persons or institutions who do not have the goal to make a professional art historian research in its chronological and stylistic diversity.
A specific example in this relation in the collection of the United Bulgarian Bank. The artworks in it have been purchased mostly with the aim to decorate the interiors of the bank spaces and the cabinets of directors. In the common case the choice has been made because of personal contacts with certain artists and personal estimation about suitable artworks. The artists are often born and work in the same city and their painting – mostly landscapes – represent typical views of it.
Established in 1992 The United Bulgarian Bank is the most comprehensive financial consolidation project in Bulgaria, fulfilled through the merge of 22 Bulgarian regional commercial banks with their branches all over the country. The United Bulgarian Bank not only had became the official assignee of these banks but also preserved the traditional attitude to the art. The Bank became responsible for all the works of art which were collected through the years and even extended their number reaching 225 pieces of art at this stage, divided by experts in three categories – gold, silver and bronze.
When does a bunch of painting become a compilation? When does a compilation become a collection? What is the meaning of a corporate collection? The exhibition “Un/noted” offers an answer to these questions. The exhibition was prepared after a long research, systematization and preservation of the paintings and graphics in the collection.
The exhibition presents the artists from the Golden Fund, who are well-known both to the professional and general audience. These are artists such as Nikola Tanev, Vasil Marinov, Zlatyu Boyadzhiev, Haralampi Iliev, Hristo Kavarnaliev, Hadhzimladenov, Ivan Ninov and many others. The exhibited works are unknown to the audience so far and have been collected from over 10 cities across the country. This is the meaning of their public presentation - to show a new aspect of the active corporate social responsibility of the United Bulgarian Bank in supporting Bulgarian culture and art.