TIME CAPSULE
The Time Capsule project explores historical eras through authentic objects, archival sources, and material evidence of their time.
Each work is grounded in factual research and documentary sources, functioning as an independent investigation articulated through the form of a painted still life.
Sofia Budakova
Realist painter.
Working in an original genre of documentary historical still life.
Sofia Budakova
Ashes of Burned Hopes, 2025
Oil on canvas, 100 × 70 cm
Time Capsule series
May 1940. Britain stands on the brink, and Dunkirk has become a trap for hundreds of thousands of soldiers. In the artist’s box lie the silent witnesses of this moment: a crumpled map of the disaster, Churchill’s favorite champagne, and the ash of a cigar scattered over Dunkirk, like the ashes of burned hopes…
The painting is more than a still life. It is a portrait of will in the face of catastrophe, where the tools of thought and spirit can turn the course of history […]
Sofia Budakova
Three Pearls, 2025
Oil on canvas, 100 × 70 cm
Time Capsule series
November 22, 1963. Dallas. The world still lives in the illusion of celebration. But time stops at 12:30. Three shots ring out. A pearl necklace, torn in the chaos — three pearls lie apart, like the three fatal shots. Chandon 1955, a favorite in the White House, stands open, but there is no one left to raise a glass.
This painting is a frozen drama. When Jacqueline lost her husband, every person lost something of their own: faith in the future, a sense of safety, or the very illusion of happiness. The artist reminds us that behind the grand scale of history stand real people — and that even behind celebratory glasses, a shot may ring out […]
Sofia Budakova
Red Pencil, 2025
Oil on canvas, 100 × 70 cm
Time Capsule series
The beginning of 1937 is a point of no return. In a box of history found in the basements of time lies the DNA of a great and harsh era.
In the box are gathered the silent witnesses of the moment. The pipe still holds warmth. The wine is a metaphor for a new country whose potential is enormous. The cork has just been removed: this is the moment of the “opening” of history. The red pencil is a symbol of will.
This is a story about a time in which a man sacrificed his personal life for the idea of statehood, transforming an agrarian country into an industrial superpower […]
Method of Documentary Practice
Each work begins with research
Archival documents, museum collections, private holdings, authentic objects, and historical sources are used.
The composition is built on factual data, with painting serving as a means to visually record the researched material.
The artist does not act as an interpreter, but as a mediator between the source and the viewer.
“Remarkable in its technique, in the selection of material, in its attitude to history and to documentary authenticity — it is truly impressive.”
"Outstanding in technique, in the choice of materials, in its approach to history, in its commitment to documentary practice — it is remarkable."