Iva Milanova
G
erman artist Iva Milanova displayed her talent as a child in Bulgaria. Her parents are artists, and her grandmother was a weaver. This early experience is reflected in her art. She learned how to weave, dye and mix colors, which brings to her painting a rich textured quality. Her use of color recreates the intensity of skeins of yarn, wet and freshly dyed. Her father created art with metal and plastics, and her mother designed contemporary jewelry. This immersion in art made it as natural for her to paint as it is for a child to play. She produced her first aquarelle at age 10. Her talent was noticed by fashion companies who hired her for textile design, at a young age. This recognition gained Milanova admission to the Bulgarian School of Art in Sofia, where she enrolled as a special student, still in high school. Later as an adult, she studied in Germany.
The depth of her art stems from the tradition of icons that must be more than a skillful rendering of a subject, but rather a sacred window into spiritual realities. Madonnas possess a hyp-
notic quality that uses an artist's skill as a tool to transcend the material world. Milanova's portraits possess this quality.
The "Woman With Turquoise Flower" has intense eyes directed towards another world, away from the viewer. These eyes are skewed, with the same lack of attention to anatomical detail as African ancestor figures. The nose is schematized and pale, - a chord of dramatic
'Her use of color recreates the intensity of skeins of yarn, wet and freshly dyed.'
contrast to the bright red notes of color too high on her cheeks, and the garish off-centered red lips below. Surrounding this ambiguous face is a large, dark hat whose carnelian brim acts as a halo. The turquoise flower juts improbably into the face and hat, floating with no logical support - an iconostasis, a veil, between the viewer and subject. Is this woman a saint, clown or whore? The impasto gold brush strokes describe a garment with an upside-down dark cross at the improbably narrow neck beneath the flower - suggesting a liturgical vestment . Completing this quasi-sacred space are the pale yellow brushstrokes in the background, a mystical aura. This compelling portrait is reminiscent of German expressionism, with multivalent levels of meaning.
Her painting "Jealousy" inserts strong black and white painted drawing into rich colors. A menacing bull, evocative of Picasso, emerges from repetitive spirals and lines emoting brute animal strength and passion. Milanova's textile background enables her to handle complex shapes with clarity and force. Her academic studies in ancient archeology and Byzantine art combine in her work to create compelling imageries, that unfold and draw the viewer into the work, to probe further Milanovas's