About The Artist

Vasco Kirov was born in the town of Dobrich, Bulgaria in 1960. He had a formal education in music and worked as a violin teacher in the early eighties. A desire for greater creative exposure and richer life experiences subsequently lead him to working as a prospecting driller, knife maker, blacksmith and ethnic jewellery maker, among others. After immigrating to South Africa in 1991, he immersed himself in fine jewellery design and manufacture, and was awarded seven prestigious design awards for excellence in diamond jewellery design. Vasco still designs and fabricates fine jewellery pieces in his studio in Cape Town. Vasco started painting in 2003 as a means of exploring a new form of creative expression. He never paints real objects – the compositions and colours rather spring from dreams or visualizations. Conveying an overall emotional impetus is what drives the creative process, rather than a direct representation of actual forms and colours. Vasco’s work is known for his use of vibrant colours and plentiful texture. "For me painting is a way to convey to others what my inner reality looks like. I guess, that is what most artists are trying to do. This is why my paintings are mostly abstract. I access this inner reality with my eyes closed, in a quiet and relaxed state or in lucid dreams, which I am blessed to have from time to time. In this personal reality light and colour form structures with astonishing size and grandeur generating emotions and strong desire to share the experience. Sharing however is not easy. It is like to listen to the most amazing music and then try to talk about it. I am not sure that I will ever be able to express these experiences in full, but every painting brings me a bit closer."