Dora Boneva was born in 1936 in Grabovo, Bulgaria, and received her Master's degree from the Academy of Fine Arts in Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria, in 1959. She began exhibiting in her native country in 1969, had her first solo exhibition in Sofia. Much traveled, keenly observant, and speaking several languages, this artist has had exhibitions in France, England, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Russia, Algiers, and the United States. Her work has earned numerous awards, among them a silver medal from the French Academy of Fine Arts. Her paintings hang in the UNESCO building in Paris and in art galleries all over Europe, as well as Japan and Israel.

Boneva, a gifted portraitist and landscapist, describes her style as expressive realism. Her portraits seek to capture "the inner light of human being," and the catalogues from her many exhibits prove that she is as successful at depicting this inner light in the young as in the middle aged and elderly. Irresistibly inspired by the changing moods of nature and effect of light and color, she often paints outdoors. Boneva's landscapes are usually rendered in watercolor in situ, the watercolor then serving as sketch for the finished oil painting.

Dora, who lives in Sofia, was selected as an Artist-in-Residence by the Griffis Art Center in New London for the 1994-95 year. She was joined by her husband, poet Lyubomir Levchev, for the latter part of her stay, and together - with paintbrush and pen - they created an unforgettable portrait of New London.

By Pamela G. Bond, 1995