Valentin Angelov painting exhibition from 07.08 to 08.19.2026

About this event

From July 8 to August 19, 2026, the talented artist Valentin Angelov brings us "Somewhere, Once" with his stories in pictures. The space of Le Petit Papillon Art Gallery comes alive with his surreal landscapes and characters, gathered in a collection of twenty paintings, almost all created in recent months for his solo exhibition in Varna. Valentin Angelov is an inquisitive artist who likes to travel and describe his impressions either with the detailed, realistic, fine line of a master illustrator, or with the expressive, different brush or spatula, but always with serenity, mood and a mysterious smile hidden in the storyline. "Somewhere, Once" is an exhibition revealing the essence of a dreamer looking at life from a height, far from the mundane topics of existence. Each picture is a separate world, a different story that happened "somewhere, once" and just one look is enough to lead the viewer's creature on an incredible journey almost like in a dream. And Valentin Angelov's dreams, which he skillfully captures in paintings, are real surreal stories. Even in the landscapes, in which at first glance there is no human presence, you can feel the mood and emotion of some event. A very ordinary and lonely island at first glance, it is actually a multitude of colorful houses, as if perched on top of each other - full of life and energy. Without being specific and wordy, the author skillfully provokes the viewer's imagination and ignites curiosity, leading him beyond the "facade". Thus, "Dream Island" is inhabited not by specific characters created by the artist, but by the characters of our personal imagination. There is no lack of provocations, subtly woven into surreal compositions, in which every object, even seemingly accidentally found there, is in fact loaded with a specific meaning and often gives complete completion to the complex plot. A blue ball levitating in space, an egg, a seashell or a colored ribbon - in everything there is embedded symbolism for the beginning and being, for the weight of thoughts and for different points of view. Thus, each of Valentin Angelov's paintings makes the viewer think and turn to his inner self, to experience and rethink different situations. General or philosophical questions are raised - Will we look for "Balance" inside ourselves or do we find it in the chaotically scattered objects, symbols and geometric figures? Is the "Balloon" - the wonderful combination with a huge fish rising unnaturally above the familiar city, or is it quite real, and the houses are disembodied and lose their outlines in the distance? How does "Selling an Island" happen and what are we willing to part with and what price can we pay for our dreams? His works hold attention and subconsciously invite us to take a break from everyday life. His fine detail and good drawing skills are in harmony on the canvas with the expressive brushwork of bright colors that reveal his turbulent, emotional world. Colors play with light and shadow. Alternation of dense and wavy fields create the feeling of life. Valentin Angelov is known in the field of oil painting, graphics and illustration. He teaches advertising design, illustration and applied graphics at the Bulgarian-Danish College. And his active creative life inevitably reflects on the plot image of his compositions and the expressive techniques he uses. The exhibition is available to connoisseurs from July 8 to August 19, 2026. in the exhibition hall of Le Pettit Art Gallery in Varna, 12 Dragoman Street, and also online at artpapillon.com or on Facebook: Le Papillon Art Gallery