Turkey from Rayovo part 2

One day, during a walk through the picturesque village of Rayovo (hence the name of the paintings – “Turkey from Rayovo”) on the outskirts of Samokov (a famous city in Bulgaria with historical and cultural value), admiring the pastoral views, we came across a yard full of turkeys. We realized that our fear from the childhood of these birds has been based on the completely delusive misconception that they are ugly. In our paintings, we wanted to show how beauty is subjective and could be found in the most bizarre of places. In a muddy country yard for instance. We found it an interesting paradox that even if it did not meet the classic standard of beauty, a turkey could be both ugly and attractive at the same time.

We wanted to use motifs with symbolic meaning that apart from looking good would charge the painting with positive energy and contain coding for health, prosperity, and well-being. For this purpose, we recreated the traditional motifs of Bulgarian weaving, widely used in the past for the manufacture of Bulgarian carpets, embroidery, etc. It is used as a symbol for curbs, borders, fences, guardians. That is why the belief is preserved that it performs an apotropaic (protective) function and was used by our ancestors to repel evil and dark forces. For us, it is extremely favorable both on an energy and aesthetic level to have such symbols at home with coding for prosperity, well-being, health, harmony, and hope.