“Phodar” Biennial – summary
The primary activity of the PHODAR Foundation is establishing cross-border connections and information exchange in the field of photography and other visual arts by means of art festivals, photo contests, exhibitions, books, with a focus on combining visual with non-visual media of communication. The foundation’s activities are carried out in public interest.
Over the past 20 years the international photo festival PHODAR BIENNIAL has evolved from an ingenious idea for an event that creates strong connections with the photography art scene around the world to an institution of world standing in the field of photographic art.
IEach edition of the festival takes the shape of a review of the current state of modern photography around the world. It is not a rare occurrence for Phodar Biennial prize winners to also be awarded at other prestigious world festivals, as is the case with Donald Weber from Canada (agency VII),Mila Tasheva from Ukraine, Alena Zhandarova from Russia and Nikola Mihov from Bulgaria.
The first nine editions of the festival were supported by the cultural institutions of the Pleven Municipality, while the tenth, eleventh and twelfth editions won the support of the Sofia Culture Program. They are held on the territory of Sofia Municipality, using the exhibition spaces of the National Gallery for this purpose, and in 2019, the lobby of the Central Station – Sofia.
In the beginning of the process it was analog and the mere opportunity to expose a three- or four-digit number of works of the world art photography in Bulgaria marked a revolutionary change when compared to the the possibilities prior to 1989.
Nowadays, when we are just a click away from viewing on our screen whichever masterpiece of modern culture we may choose, but we also get flooded with images of questionable quality by fast evolving social media, with its established position on the map of world photography, the festival offers its viewers an experience of guaranteed aesthetic quality, an encounter with works that trace the developmental path of photographic art.
History and organization
The international photo biennial Phodar aims to integrate Bulgarian photographic art into art processes at the world level. Having emerged in 1999, when photography was already recognized as one of the main modern art media, it traces time-relevant trends and has gained international authority. Nine editions of the festival took place at the “Ilia Beshkov” art gallery in Pleven. 187 authors from 7 countries took part in the first edition of the photo contest, and in the second one – 235 from 50 countries around the entire globe. New modules were gradually added – accompanying exhibitions of Bulgarian and foreign photographers, a theory seminar where experts from various field of humanities and art studies present their work on relevant topics. The fifth edition in 2007 is the first thematic one.
With nine-eleven members, the jury of the contest marks an increase from the typical five members, thus expanding the debate on the qualities of the photographs and paving the way for seeking a motivated consensual decision. Representatives of the photographic guild are a minority in this jury, which instead includes experts in various humanitarian fields – culturology, literature, art history, philosophy, journalism, etc. The goal is to break away from the cliches of professional vision and discover truly innovative and profound projects. The permanent members of the jury are also a minority – three, i.e. one third or less.
Single photographs dropped out from the last three editions of the festival to be replaced by extended photographic forms – photo series, cycles and photo essays. It is the more complicated criteria and refined juree, seeking various expert views, that distinguish Phodar Biennial’s face from the mass lay contests and make it adequate for the complex contemporary visual rhetoric.
For the past 21 years Phodar Biennial has established itself as one of the most prestigious events in the photography life of Bulgaria and the Balkans, and despite the high criteria, participation is increasing. Up until now, more than 1500 photographers from 53 countries have participated in the forum with more than 18000 photographs. The award winners include world-level authors, as well as young photographers who eventually find their place in the world art scene.
The act of combining different modules aims mostly to enrich and stimulate young authors who are looking for their creative path, but it also targets the wide cultural community interested in contemporary art. The portfolio review is similarly aimed at the young, giving them the opportunity to receive an expert analysis and recommendations for their future work, as well as offering a workshop by established authorities. In its organization phase, the festival is traditionally supported by the photography program at New Bulgarian University and the Cultural Centre of Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”.
Presenting the biennial at various forums:
In 2001 the festival participated with an exhibition at the Balkan photography meeting in Thessaloniki, Greece; in 2004 – at the international photo salon in Oradea, Romania; in 2005 – in front of the international photography slide show in Adana, Turkey; in 2008 – at the Bulgarian Cultural Institute in Paris during the international Month of Photography; in November 2014 it was visiting at the Photo Association of Serbia in Belgrade, and in June 2017 – in Paracin. Over the past 18 years selected representative collections from the biennial were visiting works in Sofia in 1999 – in the National Palace of Culture, 2004 – at the lobby of Central Station, 2006 – National Art Gallery; in 2003 and 2006 in Plovdiv during the exhibition “Impression” at the International Fair, and apart from that, chamber exhibitions in smaller towns. In 2010 and 2011 selected collections were invited by the House of Humor and Satire in Gabrovo, in September – October 2013 again in the gallery spaces of the National Palace of Culture – Sofia, and in February-March 2014 in the exhibition gallery “Alma Mater” of Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”.
Dr. Antoan Bozhinov, chairman of the Phodar Foundation