Rubble, Northwestern Bulgaria, 2019 Photograph

Giclée print on archival 308gsm Hahnemühle Photo Rag paper,117x100cm Limited edition of 1 Provided in a black wooden glass-faced frame, with a 2cm white border and no mount. Two D-ring style hanging points on the back of the frame, recommend sturdy wall fixtures due to the significant weight of the artwork. This work is a part of my fine-art/documentary project, Exemplary Home. Please read the project statement below: Exemplary Home is an intimate return to the roots of the documentary photographer Yassen Grigorov. By illustrating the effects of years of complex socio-political flux, he confronts his feelings of disdain towards his home country via the lens of a documentarian, returning to a landscape leaden with childhood memories. The photographer had left Bulgaria with a pervasive feeling of frustration and lack of acceptance in 2017, to pursue his craft in London. Over the course of the last four years, his interactions with a wide variety of people from all over the world and all walks of life inspired him to challenge his feelings of shame and his preconceptions around the society he grew up in. This process culminated in his return to the areas where the effects of the socio-political climate he left are felt the hardest, to explore and examine how people live and cope with the realities of a kleptocratic government in the last European country to move away from its communist past. The work explores the north-western part of rural Bulgaria. It aims to illustrate the effects of rapid urbanisation, progressive globalisation and corruption on the most vulnerable parts of Bulgarian society. This moment led to the discovery of an intersection of narratives, spanning the periods of The Bulgarian Renaissance, through the Soviet and now Post-Soviet era. The commentary feels particularly relevant in today’s time, with the tide on globalisation turning towards increased disunion and protests against the government breaking out in the nation. The series is Yassen Grigorov’s biggest and most accomplished work yet, having featured in a self-titled solo exhibition at the Ko-op gallery in Sofia, as well as in a multitude of group exhibitions, including Vice x The Photobook Café's 2020 graduate showcase, "Perspectives" at the Hoxton 253, In Conversation With’s Hidden Histories, The Rural by Offspring PhotoMeet, Exh 05 by Floorr Magazine, the Photograd 2020 Graduate Show, the University of Westminster 2020 BA Photography exhibition on the streets of London, Clear Channel UK and Free Range’s nationwide billboard campaign, showcasing the best works from 2020 photographic talent and perhaps most notably, winning 2nd place in the analogue works category in the prestigious International Photography Awards and 3rd in the BPA - Bulgaria's pre-eminent photography competition.