A bit of background  

No other type of school has to meet expectations for innovation and creativity like schools designed to help students in need of specialised training and “Prof. Decho Denev” is right on track with satisfying that checklist. Actually, they have been doing so since 1894, when the school became the joint venture of Ferdinand Urbich, who set the impetus for the creation of the school, Princess Eleanore, who set up the school’s charity fund, and prof. Decho Denev, the author of volumes of literature on the subject of teaching children with hearing impediments, and later tenured principal. 

 

But Urbich didn’t want to just build a place where students would feel more at home. The school’s ambition to provide full-fledged education to students of all ages and guarantee them career opportunities after graduation solidified the establishment as one of the most forward-thinking in the Balkans if not Europe. We don’t want to toot our own horn or anything, but giving us the chance to creatively depict the school’s patron trinity proved that 130 years later, the school still deeply cares for its students and has not for a moment taken a break from pushing the boundaries of education.

 After the mural was done, it wasn’t just students who got a fresher view on their morning commute to school, but parents from different corners of the country who have sent their children there came to witness live the heroes of people struggling with the challenges of reduced hearing capacities. 

 

The Who-s and How-s

How was the project realised? 

The physical metrics of a 194 000 sq.m. project are daunting enough that even if one gets to muster concepts for each wall, it still seems impossible to get through the plethora of administrative landmines following after: project revisions, assembling a team of assistants, acquiring permission from the principal and even sometimes the school’s parent council. But remember those “good actors” we mentioned earlier? They stripped down all the challenges that usually bottleneck artistic freedom. 

 

Aylin, our coordinator, kept close contact with the School’s Principal, Sevdalina Dzhongarska, who entrusted us wholly with the project.  Her only wish was for the mural to display the patrons of the school we mentioned earlier. In her words, “when one knows what to do there is little need for art direction”. 

 

On the financial side, we wouldn’t be able to complete the project without the generous help of Manol Peykov’s foundation, OIKOS who stocked us with paint, and everyone who has bought a print or a piece of merch from our online store. 

 

Whodunit? 

The main actors we hold responsible for the project are Stanislav Trifonov – Nasimo, who painted the face of Prof. Decho Denev, Kamen Bonev who did Ferdinand Urbich and Princess Eleanore, Milenist – the finest calligrapher we know and creator of the letters in between each portrait, and Svetozar Yankov – Sve, whose part involved the fine details, particularly the hand gestures on each side of the school. 

 

Our concept is traditional and in tune with other types of murals schools normally opt for with one key difference – colour. Kamen Bonev had a say on the matter of why more schools today should go down the road to unique colour palettes: 

 

“I’ve noticed this trend in recent times where schools seek more ethnographic, representational art which shouldn’t be the point in our case because why turn to artists when you can simply place a large-scale print on the wall. Our idea was to freshen up the environment, normalise the presence of such visuals and get children excited.” 

 

That’s your philosophical explanation on the matter of colour; however, Sve also told us the practical aspect of having colours different from the skin’s natural tones: “We look at what the surroundings at that time are like and try to choose a gamut befitting the school’s environment, so as to keep it harmonious but not boring.” 

 

And if you get tired of the portraits, Milenist’s calligraphy work complements perfectly the negative space between each portrait. “I followed Nasimo’s instructions during the project, so I didn’t try to stray too much from the Vyaz style we settled on (maybe I imbued some of my favourite fraktur at some point, but I don’t think it’s noticeable), but I did get to choose the words themselves: Hope, Faith, Love, Knowledge, and I thought while doing them how important their presence is among the students. I’d say it’s a 7/10 job because of these letters that don’t come around in projects often and can pose a serious challenge for any calligrapher”.

Still, here’s Nasimo’s views on the project with the hindsight of making the first step towards the Great Wall of Bulgaria:

“Well, I feel bitter-sweet contentment from all this. Perhaps the most difficult part for me was managing the project and harmonising the styles of 4 different artists, myself included, to render a coherent piece that just looks right. We haven’t delved too deeply into symbolisms, also. One main element we highlighted was the triangle uniting the patron trinity along with some hand gestures on each side that are actually words in sign language. “

 

What are you looking for in the next project? 

“We are a hairsbreadth away from collecting all the money for the Polytechnic School in Targovishte and I hope we drop an even more creative bomb there. Just like with the “Decho Denev” project, I once again am hoping for us to find students with an affinity towards the arts to get active around us and hopefully become the next generation of mural artists.”

Luckily for any student who’ll witness our artists at work, there’s always ample opportunity to grab a brush and make their own mark in the midst of our workflow. After all, the birth of an artist comes at the most unexpected events – for Nasimo it was witnessing how movie posters were made and for Kamen it was his grandfather, no artist by any means, drawing him a picture of a horse – so we try to facilitate moments of inspiration that will hopefully spark someone’s passion for art: 

 

“What we are doing is striking a conversation with children”, Kamen says, “where they see how art is created and get stoked about it. We had several students who came up to us with a plea to get a brush and just try out what it’s like to paint. Even if they don’t take up art seriously after that the physical mark they’ve left will stay on the wall and, I am quite sure of it, there will be one in their hearts forever ”.

 

If you care about what your nearby school looks like, want the country’s children to see school as something more than the dystopian matrix people now claim it to be, or just want your own kid to have a better learning experience with art at its core, you can help us achieve all that with a simple visit to our print/merchandise storefront or by making a donation of your choice