Prof. Kokalov was awarded Doctor Honoris Causa of the National Academy of Art
2025.11.20
On 18 November 2025, at Academia Gallery, Prof. Svetoslav Kokalov was officially awarded the honorary title of Doctor Honoris Causa of the National Academy of Art. The Academy's high academic distinction is awarded for exceptional services to Bulgarian fine arts, Bulgarian culture, and the National Academy of Art.
The Dean of the Faculty of Applied Arts and Design, Prof. Arsen Minkov, made the opening remarks:
"November 18 is becoming a real holiday for the entire Academy! And this ceremony is an expression of sincere respect, which is paid to those great artists, teachers, or more precisely awakeners, who with dedication and selflessness have reached out to dozens, hundreds of students the National Academy of Arts introducing them to high art. Svetoslav Kokalov has made exceptional contributions both over the many years of teaching and artistic activity in the field of scenography, and for managing the Academy –as Head of the Department of Scenography, as Dean of the Faculty of Applied Sciences, and, most importantly, as Rector in the period 2007–2015."
Assoc. Prof. Marina Raychinova from the Department of Scenography presented the creative biography of Prof. Svetoslav Kokalov. She highlighted the fundamental [...] contribution of Prof. Kokalov to the development of the educational programmes in the department, and to the creation of new programmes and courses related to the introduction of digital technologies and new media...
The Rector of the National Academy of Art, Prof. Georgi Iankov, performed the ceremony of awarding the Doctor Honoris Causa diploma and collar of the National Academy of Art. Afterwards, Prof. Svetoslav Kokalov delivered a speech of thanks before the audience.
At the ceremony, the short documentary about Prof. Kokalov withing the series "The Doyens of the National Academy of Art", was screened for the first time. It is based on Georgi Iankov's idea and directed by Rositsa Mladenova, screenplay by Yuriy Dachev.
Congratulatory addresses were received from the Minister of Culture of Bulgaria, Mr Marian Bachev, and from the management body of the Bulgarian Red Cross.
Gallery
