Comparative Research And International Exchange Drawing Upon Maryn Varbanov’s Life And Work

My main aims in writing this thesis have been to understand Maryn Varbanov’s art and life career in a way that makes it more coherent, unified, and, I hope, more broadly meaningful than existing treatments allow, and through Varbanov to clarify certain features of the art, avant-garde and of modern cultural history more generally. What makes it possible to pursue these goals at the same time is Maryn Varbanov’s exemplary participation in certain large questions as that have been central both to modern experience and to modernist movements. These questions cluster around the relations between art and craft, tapestry and architecture, textiles and technology, teaching, education and art practices, culture and society. Besides also gatering about the transactions between personality and impersonality, between the heightened experience of individuality and the intensified sense of anonymity that artists, like the rest of us, experience and need to confront under modern conditions. My discussion often returns to these topics, but while pursuing them I have also sought to make Maryn Varbanov accessible to those who know little or nothing about him, and in this spirit the prologue begins by setting forth some of the main elements of his life, career and reputation before going on to outline the kind of approach I have tried to take with him. People who are acquainted with Maryn Varbanov, and especially with existing treatments of his life and work, will be aware that my views are often at odds with existing ones. However, I have seldom conducted arguments with other writers in the text; those who care about such things will know to look for them mostly in the notes.Chapter One, "Early life, art and inspiration", places this research in a terms who was Maryn Varbanov as an artist person and collaborator. Beginning with his life in early stage in Bulgaria, his study at the National Academy of Arts, the background and formation of an artist. In the second part of this chapter I examine his artistic development, endowment and influence which China period of his life challenged and formed Maryn Varbanov personality as an artist and explorer.Chapter Two, "Devotion to tapestry" abstracts my interest in Maryn Varbanov’s art practice and life in his dedication to tapestry as art. In this chapter I began with various descriptions on what is the art of tapestry and its elements, and juxtapose traditional Chinese ’Kesi’ tapestry techniques and the famous French ’Aubusson’ tapestry weaving traditions from early thirteen century. I investigated how weavers and craftsman’s approached their materials and methods of making through contemporary textile art theory. In the last part I outlines the innovations of Jean Lurcat, a painter and tapestry artist in the techniques of tapestry, who influenced the entire generation of artists working in the field from 1950s and 1960s. Lurcat had gathered around him key persons and famous contemporary artists such as Le Corbusier, Victor Vasareli and Pablo Picasso and persuaded them to design tapestry projects, he was the person who initiates and founded the Lausanne International Tapestry Biennial in 1962.Chapter Three, "The terms of cultural policies in Bulgaria, France and China, a subject of censorship" underlined the relationship of government power and artists, and over the art of Maryn Varbanov. In the first part I underlined the political events related to cultural activities during the "Cold War" period and defining what is cultural policy, through Michael Foucault and Theodor Adorno’s ’culture industry’ regarding Raymond Williams thesis that’Culture is ordinary: that is the first fact. Every human society has its own space, its own purposes, and its own meanings. Every human society express these, in institutions in arts and learning.’Second part of the chapter examine Maryn Varbanov’s life and work in the field on contemporary tapestry linked with the alterations of cultural policies in Bulgaria and France focusing on the gaps between theory, practice, cultural policy and audience reception during 1970s and in the first half of 1980s.Chapter Four, "Maryn Varbanov and Bulgarian textile art of 1950’s until 1980’s" focussed on the implicit relationships between the art of Maryn Varbanov and to the development of Bulgarian fine art, and textiles as art and design. I positioned the works of Varbanov in-between the changes and transformations of styles in Bulgarian artistic stage during the time of communism. I observe the relations between ’traditional’ and ’traditionalistic’, the "decorative" and ’monumental’ in the national image of tapestry art, in interactions to man, architecture and space. In the end of this chapter I examine also some direct influences from Maryn Varbanov’s art practices and education on contemporary tapestry related to Bulgarian textile industry.Chapter Five, "Europe, France period and the influence of world tapestry movements into Maryn Varbanov’s art" focusing on the foundation of Lausanne International Tapestry Biennial and its establishment as a center of contemporary tapestry and new tendencies in fiber art, and the influence on Varbanov’s art. Through the Biennials development I discussed the use of fibrous materials in the avant-garde during the 1960s and 1970s in Europe and America. By presenting textile and tapestry practices I underline the relationships with the artists Robert Morris and Eva Hesse involved in art movements such as ’post-minimalism’ and ’Process art’ and in contemporary art in large. At last part of the chapter I focused on the Maryn Varbanov’s growth as an artist in the international art stage, and through his art works examining the relationships with the French tapestry art society.Chapter Six, "Maryn Varbanov and his influence to society, education and art" researches the relationships between tapestry art, craft and fine art. I chose to review the last period of his life in China, that time in Varbanov’s carrier when he was entering a new phase of artistic realization, creating his ’perpetual mobile’ experiments and installations, playing with various materials and space. Through Varbanov’s ample concept of collaboration, creating a center for art and cultural exchange, making an important contributions to Chinese avant-garde in 1980s, gave the guidance’s of new education system, I positioned the questions of art and craft, traditions and artistic realization, teaching and education, textiles and relations to architecture, man and space.