Monograph of Alexander Kuyumdzhiev “Iconographers Yoan Popraykov from the town of Elena and Yoan Popnikolov from Gabrovo”

The monograph of Assoc. Prof. Alexander Kuyumdzhiev Iconographers Yoan Popraykov from the town of Elena and Yoan Popnikolov from Gabrovo was published. Institute of Art Studies, BAS, S., 2025, ISBN 978-619-7619-52-2. 169 p., 237 figures. 
The research is dedicated to the work of two iconographers from the period of the Bulgarian Revival, whose biographies and works are confused in science. Their iconographic production is mixed in one and is known mainly under the name of Yoan Popraykov from the town of Elena. He is a much more famous master today and is considered to have been an extremely productive iconographer, which is why he is credited with over 500 works. It was believed that he was the teacher of Yoan Popnikolov from Gabrovo, whose work has remained almost unknown, as it numbers only a dozen icons.

While researching the works of the two iconographers and distinguishing their biographies and works, it became clear that they were probably peers, had never worked together and had no professional relationship as a teacher and student. The work of the Gabrovo master is also far more extensive than that of the iconographer from the town of Elena, but it remained entirely in his shadow. To rehabilitate Yoan Popnikolov’s artistic activity and correct this significant scientific mistake, the monograph traces in detail the production of each of the two masters, revising inaccurate ideas about them and enriching their biographies with new information and icons. The recommendation for the subsequent studies dedicated to them is to study each iconographer separately to break the artificially created connection between them, to which today we have to dedicate a whole book.