The exhibition is dedicated to the 120^th anniversary of the birth of the great Bulgarian artist Tsanko Lavrenov (1896-1978). The initiator of the celebration is "Tsanko Lavrenov" Foundation. The project is implemented by the Sofia City Art Gallery

, the "Tsanko Lavrenov" Foundation and the City Art Gallery in Plovdiv under the patronage of the Sofia Mayor - Ms. Yordanka Fandakova.

The exhibition is of a retrospective character. The works included are from collections of the state and municipal museums and galleries in the country, the largest of which is that of the Art Gallery in Plovdiv - 65 paintings. The other significant volume collection is of the "Tsanko Lavrenov" Foundation. Private collectors with separate works are involved as well.

After the last major exhibition at the National Gallery in 2002, this is the first comprehensive exhibition which meets in a new way the audience with the works of one of the most interesting figures in the Bulgarian art. It includes more than 300 works: paintings, prints, drawings, applied projects. It is an ambitious plan for a project aimed at promoting the art of Tsanko Lavrenov in its fullness and entirety – from his early works to his last composition. Its implementation is based on a thorough examination of the personal archive of the artist which enters into transmission for the first time. The rich documentary part is integrated in painting materials. The exhibition opens to the public the hitherto unknown parts of creativity of the artist: his first attempts at art, dating back to his high school years, and the newly discovered works from his "modernist" years with an emphasis on the period of his education in Vienna (1920-1922). For the first time Tsanko Lavrenov will be presented in the context of the 20s and 30s of the twentieth century. Through his contacts with close friends, artists from Plovdiv such as: Danail Dechev, Vitko Dabakov, Zlatyu Boyadzhiev, Vasil Barakov, David Peretz, Vladimir Rilski - their works are also included in the exhibition. Discoveries have also been the unknown works of Lavrenov in the field of illustration and graphic design. The visitors of the exhibition can also remember the already familiar landmark paintings like "Old Plovdiv" /1930/, which for years had not been shown in public, "Poet and Nature", "Bullet Khan in Plovdiv", "Hilendar monastery", "Small Music Night in the Old Town" and others.

"Between Modern and Canon" is an attempt to break stereotypes of the image of the artist. Outside the conservative image, associated primarily with the paintings from the series of "Old Plovdiv" and the native themes, Tsanko Lavrenov is multifaceted in his various forms of modern pursuit. Beyond the canon, which he alone creates in search of his original personal style, beyond the concept of modelling for search of a "national spirit art," he was always sensitive to new developments. His work, especially in the 30s, is a major contribution to the modern appearance of the Bulgarian painting from the first half of the twentieth century.

The visitors of the exhibition can use audio guides in Bulgarian and English texts for some of the emblematic paintings of Tsanko Lavrenov. The exhibition is accessible to the visually impaired, as there are specifically made tactile maps of some of the works accompanied by an explanatory text to the audio guides.

The exhibition can be seen at the SAG from the 7^th of June to the 14^th of August and will then be displayed in the Art Gallery in Plovdiv.

The material and pictures are provided by SAG. More can be viewed at: http://sghg.bg.