Citations
“Yordan Parushev affirmed his artistic abilities within a short period of time during the first years after his graduation. To a great degree his artistic viewpoint became the expression of a quest for new artistic forms of a generation of young painters. He participated in several of the first activities of the non-conventionalists. His predilection for expressing himself through painting and the related preferences for subject matter, colors and space plasticity, predefined his artistic choice. He remained within the space of paintings where he discovered his artistic vision, affirmed his sensibility and found the right mode of being in art. What his paintings offer, can be defined as a possibility to undertake a trip into strange and mystical spaces. At times these spaces are cold and invoke fear, at other moments they are clean and placid, inhabited by good-natured beings. These spaces are flooded with light that puts us at peace with the world around – this light flows from within and refracts colors in an unusual kaleidoscopic way.”
Stanislav Pamukchiev
“Art” magazine, 4/1997
“Even nowadays his complex and delicately formed paintings are in search of vast psychological and aesthetic spaces. Emotionally charged and expressive, his art tries to visualize the deeply hidden sentiments. Sometimes through his work the artist manages to touch upon the boundless layers of being – back in time and then, instantly, he bounces back and reaches for the nebulous space of cosmic dreams”.
Ivan Savov, November 1995
‘’Yordan Parushev has won his special place in the broad and controversial panorama of modern Bulgarian painting by consistently articulating and deeply defending his artistic standpoint. It builds upon his passionate, devoted and intimate experience of the process of painting and of its hidden and mystical spatial structure. On the surface his paintings appear restrained, distant and quiet – in their depth, they are richly charged with meanings and emotions. Their aesthetic value can be read as a transformation of ethical imperatives and their plastic vibrations – as resonance of a spiritual movement.”
Stanislav Pamukchiev
“Kultura” weekly, 6/2005
“Most of the paintings, representative of the different art cycles in the work of Yordan Parushev, demonstrate the perfect balance between ideas, technique and execution. His “Zhivets” (‘Life force’?) is particularly impressive – it is both refined in its introversion and gently metaphysical”.
Maria Landova
“Kapital” daily – March 2003
‘’His passion to create color contrasts and harmonies, his ability to manipulate relief into spectacular forms, his pasting together of thick paper or veiling of colors, shapes and objects with semi-transparent paper, have transformed his work into a real feast for the senses. All of these qualities make his paintings evoke a wide span of associations and meanings.”
Ruen Ruenov
“Democratsia” daily – November 2001
“In the context of his unique artistic alchemy Yordan Parushev realizes consciously and points out clearly the idea that behind all visible reality there is something else – true essence and deep meaning are located beyond the surface of the real. This explains why he is so intensely drawn to the translucence of the thin layer of paper that allows the viewer to perceive and feel the deeper hidden layers of Parushev’s creations. This is why his paintings generate not only aesthetic pleasure through the perception of colors, substance, surfaces and harmonious composition, but also involves the viewer in the discovery of the seriousness of metaphysical thinking and the meditative frame of mind through which one can reach the higher states of being and the spiritual context of life. Parushev’s paintings exhibit this difficult intermingling of the sensuality of the senses with the spiritual spaces of the mind. Yordan Parushev is the embodiment of this coexistence – his gaze is capable of discovering the unusual, the detail, and the sounds of matter, while at the same time his spirit roves above the real. He is enraptured by the beauty of natural forms and phenomena; however, owing to his pure soul and his full and uncompromised devotion to Art, he is also capable of painfully experiencing the absurdity of human life.’’
Rumen Serafimov
April 2008.
“Organizing exhibitions of drawings by young talent on the 4th floor of the Art Gallery at 6, Shipka street, has turned into an established tradition. This time around, the exhibition of Yordan Parushev’s art turned out to be a real surprise not only for the organizers of this event but also for people who have known him closely. This exhibition includes a sample extracted from a set of hundreds of drawings which he has created during his specialization in Leningrad. These drawings show the author’s attempt to discover and explore certain art forms that he had not used before.
His cycles “Eastern motifs”, “Figure” and “Balance” demonstrate his ability to establish a free dialogue with either the op art or with Bulgarian and foreign plastic art traditions. The most positive trait of the exhibition is the analytical attempt at communicating with various artistic ideas.”
Dimitar Grozdanov
“Narodna Kultura” daily, March 1988.
“ …to the fairy-tale child’s play of toy soldiers in Yordan Parushev’s “Museum exhibits”. Without any doubt here the notions of romantic and tragic blend together while the fairy-tale and the real define a space filled with rhythm, movement, feelings, reflections and a moral.”
Plamena Dimitrova-Racheva
“Art” magazine 1/1985
‘’Yordan Parushev participated most actively with oil paintings in his familiar constructive manner. “The Town” is one of his most complete paintings, but “Nordic Light’’ is better at grabbing the viewer’s attention. The same can be said for his oil-on-paper creations containing magically symbolic configurations. Parushev’s choice of direction is often hasty, but it always reminds of the possibilities which he is going to discover.”
Encho Mutafov
“Slivensko delo” daily, April 1989.
“The artistic creations of Yordan Parushev – watercolor portraits and chamber paintings – were a prominent bright spot in this exhibition. The author possesses the skills to charge his images with psychological authenticity and to make their emotional impact truly palpable. The painter remains at all times brilliantly expressive and in perfect command of his technique and artistic tools”.
Sonja Ninova
“Slivensko Delo” daily, May 1984.