In brief
On October 29, 2027, British artist Lee Maelzer opened her exhibition *Hayden* at Sofia’s Cable Depot Gallery. Curated by Iavor Lubomirov, the display runs until November 21 and centers on model Hayden Hughes, exploring themes of loneliness, social inequality, and intimacy within derelict interiors. The show is part of a Bulgarian Ministry of Culture funded project, ‘In the Process of Translation – The Periphery at the Center’.
The exhibition "Hayden" by British artist Lee Maelzer officially opened on October 29, 2027, at the Cable Depot Gallery in Sofia, according to the BTA's coverage.
Curated by Iavor Lubomirov, the show will run through November 21 and examines the relationship between people and abandoned urban spaces, a recurring theme in Maelzer’s work for more than fifteen years.
In "Hayden", the artist gives prominence to model Hayden Hughes, who appears in several poses that juxtapose his figure against decaying interiors—staircases, ruins, and empty rooms—highlighting loneliness, social inequality, and alienation.
Lubomirov, who has long followed Maelzer’s practice and organized her first solo show, emphasizes how her work captures human presence even in absence, and in this exhibition he writes that Maelzer “paint[s] her own presence for us through the figure of Mr. Hughes.”
The exhibition is part of a larger cultural project titled "In the Process of Translation – The Periphery at the Center," which the Bulgarian Literature Foundation runs, funded by the Ministry of Culture under the 2025 Open Call for Visual Arts.
Maelzer, born in London and trained at Central Saint Martins and the Royal College of Art, has exhibited worldwide, including at the National Portrait Gallery in London; she also teaches fine art at the University of East London.
