Ivan Gazdov
Graphicatures
7-10.01.2020
IVAN EDWARD GAZDOV was born in Yambol, Bulgaria
EDUCATION:
1954 – 1958 Studied drawing in the course of Stephan Bachvarov in the town of Yambol
1964 – Finished The High School of Fine Arts, Sofia in the class of Dimitar Arnaudov
1970 – Graduated from The National Academy of Art, Sofia as student of Prof. Alexander Poplilov, specialty “Poster”.
SPECIALIZATIONS:
1964 – Sent on practicum by the High School of Fine Arts to Bucharest, Romania
1967 – Sent on practicum by the Academy of Fine Art to Prague, Czechoslovakia
1968 – Visited the Academies of Fine Art in Warsaw and Krakow, Poland, sent on a business trip by the Ministry of Culture
1978 – Specialized in the course of Prof. Metz at Gerrit- Rietwelt Akademie in Amsterdam, Holland.
1996 – Creative sojourn at Cité des Arts, Paris (as a result of a national competition)
WORK EXPERIENCE:
From 1970 till 1976 he worked in the Graphic arts department of the Industrial Aesthetics Center, where he worked out dozens of trade marks and fonts.
During the period 1973 – 75 he worked as part-time assistant at the National Academy of Art, in the department of “Poster”
1976 – Assistant , at the National Academy of Art, in the department of “Poster”
1986 – Associate Professor, National Academy of Art
1994 – Professor, National Academy of Art
Since 1995 – Head of Department “Poster and Visual Communication”, National Academy of Art
1999 – 2003 – Rector of the National Academy of Art, Sofia
PUBLIC ACTIVITIES
Since 1997 member of the Specialized Scientific Council of Art Criticism and Fine Arts with the Supreme Testimonial Committee
1998 – 2000 – member of the Commission of Philological Sciences and Arts with the Supreme Testimonial Committee
1994-1997 member of the Specialized Council of Postage Stamp Publishing with the Committee of Posts and Communications
1995- 1996 member of the Board of Managers of the Design and Advertisement Association
1992 – Founder of “Visual Imagination” Club at the National Academy of Art
MEMBERSHIP
Member of the Union of Bulgarian Artists, Section “Graphic Art, Graphic Design and Caricature” since 1978
1995 – 1997 – Member of the Design and Advertisement Association
2008 Member of the Bulgarian “Art Directors Club”, Sofia
2010 Member of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences and Arts (BASA)
PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND:
-Graphics (cycle “Grotesques” – etchings; cycle “The Line Greets the Spot” – dry-point and linocut)
-Posters (cycles “Play of Silhouettes”, “Anti AIDS”, “Social Posters” – author’s posters)
-Caricatures,
-Book cover and book illustration,
-Advertising and applied graphic art,
-Drawings in ink, water colours, drawing charcoal, pastel,
-Plaster and bronze plastic,
-Postage stamps etc.
Author of a personal graphic design GRAPHICATURE ®, (artistic trademark for Europe).
From 1987 till 2005 – about 200 graphicatures. Cycles: “Something Useless, Something’s Not Enough” and “Black Touches”- serigraphy – about 3000 copies; “Coloured Version”- acryl on canvas.
Originator of the AUTHORSHIP POSTER in Bulgaria.
He is an author of 3 monographs, 8 albums, and more than 30 articles, published in the specialized issues on art, as well as of many other in the periodical press. Has designed more than 100 books, some of which are with illustrations (for publishing houses “Bulgarski Pisatel”, “Narodna Kultura”, “Narodna Mladezh”, ” Izdatelstvo OF”, “Prosveta”, etc.
Author of numerous posters for Publishing house “Septemvri”
Author of more than 200 caricatures in the periodical press (contributor to “Sturshel” newspaper since 1961)
From 1986 till 2003 – illustrated materials for “Zhenata Dnes” magazine
Author of more than 50 written reviews for graduands in “Poster” specialty and of dozens of speeches for the opening of his colleagues’ exhibitions.
Bulgarian Posts EOOD issued stamps (2 and envelope) with his series “Play of silhouettes” on the occasion – International Year of the Poster on behalf of Bulgaria, 2003.
INTERNATIONAL PRIZES
1975 Prize from the International Salon of Caricature, Montreal, Canada
1979 Special prize for caricature from the International Exhibition of Caricature, Ankara, Turkey
1979 Special prize from the International Biennial “Car and Environment”, Sofia, Bulgaria
1983 Prize from the International Poster Competition on the occasion of the “30th Anniversary of the Assault on the Barracks of Monkada”, Havana, Cuba
1984 Prize from the International poster competition on the occasion of the “40th Anniversary of the Victory over Fascism”, Moscow, USSR
1985 Prize for poster on “Ethics in traffic”, from the International Biennial ” Car and Environment”
1986 Special prize for caricature “Hidezo Kondo” from the International Competition of “Yomiuri Shimbun” newspaper, Tokyo, Japan
1987 Invited artist for the competition of “Yomiuri Shimbun” newspaper, Tokyo, Japan
1988 Prize for poster from the Second International Exhibition of Art Directors’ Club, New York, USA
1990 Merit award for caricature from the International Competition of “Yomiuri Shimbun” newspaper, Tokyo, Japan
1992 “Certificat de Finalist” from the International Poster Competition “Protection of Nature”, Chaumon, France
1994 “Winner’s Award” from the 4th Competition for Postage Stamp “45th Anniversary of the Declaration of Man’s Rights”
1996 “Encouragement Award” from the First International Graphic Design Competition on Internet, Tokyo, Japan
1999 Bronze prize from the 2nd International Graphic Design Competition on Internet, Tokyo, Japan
DISTINCTIONS
1991-92 “Man of the Year” – selected by the International Biographical Center (IBC), Cambridge, England
1992 “Man of the Year” – selected by the American Biographical Institute (ABI), USA
1992 Silver Medal for Achievements in the XX Century, International Biographical Center, Cambridge England
1992 “World Lifetime Achievement Award”, American Biographical Institute, USA (has a fund of his own in the ABI)
1993 Selected as “Man of the Year 1993”, American Biographic Institute, USA
1995-1996 Selected as “Man of the Year” by the International Biographical Center, Cambridge, England
2004 The Great Prize of the town of Yambol for exceptional contribution to the national and world plastic culture, awarded by the Town Council of the town of Yambol. (31.05.2004)
2005 Nominated as “Leading Educators of the World – 2005” by the International Biographical Center, Cambridge, England