COURTESY OF BILIANA POPOVA
Biliana Popova has come a long way. She arrived in New York from Bulgaria in 1999, spent two days there, came to Los Angeles, and has lived here ever since.
COURTESY OF THE ARTIST
Although they’d met earlier, Popova invited curator Ann Martin to her solo show this past February, and clearly Martin was impressed. That set the ball rolling for “Biliana Popova: Ceramic Work,” opening tomorrow, Friday, Oct. 17, at the Manhattan Beach Art Center.
What Popova creates is very stylish and exquisite to the point of being sensual. The work exudes thoughtfulness and yet a gentle passion.
“Before I studied ceramics,” Popova says, “I studied (at) a vocational high school for fine arts, so I have explicit knowledge of simplifying the human body, and I’ve always been drawn to form in general. My initial work was more decorative than sculptural.
“In 2004 I started a series of live sculptures. I’d never been into portraiture or descriptive work when it comes to the human body or spirit, and my focus was in simply pure forms representing the figurative. So that’s what my sculptural work is about; it’s taking emotion and the human spirit to simple forms.”
COURTESY OF THE ARTIST
As she puts it in her artist’s statement: “I love form. Curves and silhouettes are what engage my attention. I am transfixed by how forms transition into one another and how the human body’s posture and movement transcend into emotion. In my work, I predominantly explore the female form. It is my favorite subject.”
“I also have a high interest in line design and classic art,” she says, “and I guess that explains my highly decorative art,” these being the plates and bowls and so forth.
“About a year ago the two came together,” Popova explains, “the figurative sculpture and the decorative, where I started decorating my sculptures with graphic designs and forms.”
This marriage of, as she calls it, the “figurative” and the “objects of function” has yielded some exceptional pieces, and about 24 or 25 of them will be on hand for our viewing pleasure.
COURTESY OF THE ARTIST
“Biliana Popova: Ceramic Works” opens tomorrow, Oct. 17, with an artist’s talk at 6:30, followed by a reception from 7 to 9 p.m., in the Manhattan Beach Art Center, 1560 Manhattan Beach Blvd., M.B. Hours: Wed., Fri., Sat., Sun. from 1 to 5 p.m., and Thurs. from 1 to 8 p.m. Closes Nov. 26. Information, (310) 802-5440 or go to citymb.info.
