Interview with: Dobra Slavkova
November 2025
Dobra Slavkova is an artist who discovered her path in art as a child, studying in a specialized program for fine and applied arts. She sold her first paintings back in 2003. Today she works primarily with acrylics, creating vivid, textured compositions that convey movement, transformation, and light. Inspired by the contemporary style of “textural-graphic impressionism”, her works are bright, expressive, and full of energy.
Her abstract paintings often weave together natural forms, circular motifs, and elements of Bulgarian visual traditions, reimagined through a contemporary, intuitive lens. Through her artistic project “Moments of Inspiration,” she shares her work as a reminder that inspiration is everywhere.
Her paintings are part of private collections in Bulgaria, Austria, Germany, and the United States. She has participated in numerous group exhibitions and in 2024 she co-created the exhibition “Tales of Awakening” at MISSIA23 — a project inviting viewers toward inner awakening, action, and a deeper connection with themselves and the world around them.
Welcome Dobra, first tell us about your background and why you chose to pursue this career.
Do you remember the first artwork that stirred something inside you?
I am from Bulgaria and I live in Sofia. I can say that it wasn’t me who chose art, but art that chose me. I never deliberately pursued a career as an artist. But I have always been a creator at heart, a designer by spirit, and painting has long been my way of expressing myself, conveying messages to people, and challenging both myself and others.
Do I remember the first artwork that stirred something inside me? A very interesting question. Perhaps it was my mother’s tapestries and the beautiful crocheted tablecloths made by my grandmother, Dobra. I have always admired handmade work—where a person invests not only their skills, but also their soul.
Does spirituality or a connection to something larger than yourself influence your creative process?
Yes, it does. It doesn’t just influence my work — this is an inseparable part of my creative process. I believe that painting is a tool for connecting with higher forces, for spiritual alignment both with oneself and with the collective intelligence and universal consciousness that connects us all. Whenever I begin a new piece, I turn to the Universe with a sense of gratitude for the creative process ahead. I try to listen to what it wants to express through me as energy and vision, and if I am painting for a specific person —
what message it has for them.
How do you measure the impact of your work — by its reception, its personal meaning, or something else?
I measure the impact of my work in two ways. On one hand, through what it means to me personally as I go through the creative process — what it brings me as a human being and as an artist, which skills I develop, and how much of the idea from my imagination I manage to translate into the final image. On the other hand, the impact my work has on others is equally important to me. If a piece prompts someone to reflect on a particular theme, or gives them a sense of joy, ease, or light — then I know I have fulfilled my mission.
Describe a piece you’ve created that has held the most emotional weight for you. What makes it significant?
Two of the paintings I am presenting in your gallery — which actually form a diptych — are “Sunny Girl” and “With a Breath of Sun.” They were inspired by a poem written by the Bulgarian poet Petya Dubarova, remembered for her unique talent and free-spirited nature. Have you ever felt such a strong urge to create something that you were ready to drop everything else, just to bring it to life as quickly as possible — before it became too late and the moment slipped away?
The moment I heard the song from the film “Petya of My Petya,” the images of the paintings appeared in my mind. With every verse, it felt as if an invisible hand was painting in front of me... And I told myself: I have to paint them while I’m alive. I have to try, even if they don’t turn out as magical as they are in my imagination. A voice inside me kept saying: Just do it!
Petya Dubarova was a Bulgarian poet who remained forever 17. She took flight toward the sea — the place where she was born and lived her brief, tender life. She left us a radiant legacy filled with unforgettable words.
For me, these paintings are a tribute to Petya Dubarova and the energy carried by her poetry. At the same time, while creating them, I hoped they would serve as a way to pass this inspiration on to future generations.
And here is the translation of the poem that inspired me:
TO BE A SUNNY GIRL
In my palms the red sun is poised
good and bright, like a scarlet dove
it nestled smiling within me
alight my pulse is singing instantly.
I want the sun for all my life to have
and my palms always shall be burning;
to wear the breath of the ever burning sun
and to wildly burn, but not be burning.
And people to watch me and smiling
say "She is a sunny girl,
in her sunny red veins
the breath of sun with her blood is running."
I want, as soon as I expire
- the sun - with me to not cool down
but as bright as my scarlet blood
to shine over the lands and gardens.
To take in flight amongst the happy people,
to tell them sunny tales and tales of me
and I will be alive, eternally alive,
for my sun shall always be.
PETYA DUBAROVA
April 25, 1962 – December 4, 1979
Translation by Dede Stoykova
What artistic “superpower” would you choose to have, and how would it shape your work?
I have always wanted to be able to transform musical notes — music itself — into colors. In a way, I probably do that even now, since music is part of my special rituals during the creative process. I choose the music based on what I am about to create, and it helps me feel the energy I need. If I could develop a structured system of colors that “sing” and recreate musical compositions, I would gift
this “music” to deaf people.
Artist who has most influenced you in the past or stylistically?
I have definitely been greatly influenced by the contemporary Russian artist Anastasia Trusova, creator of the acrylic painting style “textural-graphic impressionism.” Her creative path and worldview, as well as her way of expressing herself through textures and colors, inspire me and encourage me to experiment boldly in my own work.
We are at the end of this short interview, would you like to add something about your artistic research?
How did you find the collaboration with our gallery?
I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to take part in your platform with my artworks. It is wonderful that you provide artists from around the world with such accessible exposure. I would be delighted for the messages carried by my paintings to reach more people. And why not be inspired for a joint project with fellow artists?