Dancho Atanasov — Contemporary Art Curator Magazine

Biography

Since his early childhood Dancho Atanasov has been interested in arts and has tried out many things – from music to painting and fine arts as well. He gets to know photography through his uncle – skydiving as a teenager. His uncle, himself an enthusiastic parachutist and photographer, lends him his photographic equipment and teaches him the fundamentals.
The artist left his time as a jet fighter pilot and air traffic controller behind and now works as a conceptual, fine art, landscape, travel and architectural photographer. His works have received many awards and are frequently exhibited.

Artist Statement

Harmony and Aesthetics

What first prompted you to think of becoming an artist?

I have been always into the Arts - from drawing and painting(my father was good in both) to classic guitar in the primary school and electric guitar in a rock band later. As a teenager I used to skydive and my uncle(former skydiver) was practicing photography. He used to share with me his cameras, which I was taking to the air club. Initially, the first photos were a simple disaster, but afterwards they were getting better and better. When I was flying as a jet fighter pilot, it was happening to take my camera with me, if the type of flight was not so complex. It was in the 1980s, when there were not many technical options. Since 2010, during 4 years I used to work as chief editor and photojournalist in a travel magazine, which was a great experience and cultivate my point of view. Think, the final step was my Conceptual Photography Master’s Class accomplishment.

What kind of an artist do you ultimately see yourself?

I have found out, that photography as it is, is not enough for me as an artist. I am definitely a technocrat (2 engineering master’s degrees) and I permanently broaden my skills and knowledge to be in touch with the current innovations and technologies. As a subject of my interest and deep appreciation are Artificial Intelligence(AI), Augmented Reality(AR), VR(Virtual Reality), Photogrammetry and 3D. I work on my self-development evaluating the mixture of different media and its implementation in the near future as elements of my Art.

What are you hoping to communicate to the viewer through your work?

My best way of communication with the viewer is the synergy of shapes, colors, light, details, choice of point of view – all it drives to my goal and the unique result - Harmony and Aesthetics.

Can you explain the process of creating your work?

I travel a lot worldwide. Usually, I make research about the history, architecture, sightseeing, events in my next destination and make notes about my photography “targets”. Some of them I plan preliminary before my departure and some of them I spot onsite. I start with the planned spots. A very important factor is the weather conditions - they determine the choice of my photo gear, clothing, time management. The next step is the selection of the photographs, which also does not let any compromises. The process of photo development includes different stages – from slight photo adjustments to more elaborate tasks – ex. group image processing like the ones in the photo collages. The ultimate piece of work is the final evaluation, which can lead to publishing or returning to some of the previous steps.

What is your favourite part of the creative process?

I would not say, I have a favourite part of the creative process, because in every stage there are all those good vibrations, expectations and feelings caused by the unknown. They exist everywhere – when I plan my next photo trip, when I arrive and get in touch with the new place, when I see the real objects of my photography, whole the shooting process, the review and analysis afterwards and development in the end. Everything is very tempting and emotional.

Can you give us an insight into current projects and inspiration, or what we can look forward to from you in the near future?

I keep on working on my Digital World project, where 9 female photo models were participating and the first collage, called “Escape” is already a winner in photo contents. A recent thrilling idea is Caribbean Landscapes. I have also started working on something very new for me - Aerial Photography and Videography. There will be very fascinating results when I combine all those new technologies and different types of media and hope, the audience will enjoy it in a short time.

Website https://artofdancho.com/

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/art_dancho/

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