Contemporary art is not vandalism

The transformation by anonymous graffiti artists of the soldiers of the Soviet memorial in Sofia into heroes of US pop culture is more than just a joke, writes columnist Boyko Penchev. This art action raises the question of the relationship between power, art and history, according to his analysis in his blog A Europa desalinhada in the weekly Expresso. "The entire history surrounding the painted memorial of the Soviet army illustrates clearly who is really ruling over us. Not those in power today, but our own unchanging mentality. And when at last something does happen then the memorial gets cleaned at three in the morning. The anonymous painters have not only brought a bit of colour to the grey figures of the statue, but also to the grey face of power. [The minister of culture and famous sculptor] Vezhdi Rashidov described the transformation of the Soviet solders into heroes of US pop culture as 'vandalism'. Clearly in the eyes of the minister art is limited to a few bits of bronze in a corporate entrance hall or the paintings that hang modestly in offices and banks. Contemporary art should be like classical art, only made by living artists."

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