BIOGRAPHY
Tsvetana (Tsetsa) Ninova was born on 16 September 1923 in the village of Popitsa, Vratsa County, Bulgaria. She graduated from high school in 1942
in the town of Biala Slatina. She
began her architectural studies at the University of Zagrel, Yugoslavia (today
the capital of Croatia) in 1943 but, due to the war, returned to Bulgaria
(1944) and continued her education at the recently founded (1943) department of
Architecture of Sofia Polytechnic. She graduated in 1949 and began working at “Engergoproject”
and then at “Glavroject” (1958-1966).
From 1966 to 1971
Ninova worked in Paris, France at the Institute for Urbanism (1966-1970) and
Ecole des Beaux-Arts (1970-1971). She also worked in several architectural offices designing apartment
buildings in Paris and the suburbs. Her thesis project, for urban development of Como and the Lake of Como
near Milan, Italy, won her recognition in the 1970 international competition.
Moving back to Sofia,
Tsvetana worked in the Regional Design Organization and, beginning in 1978,
headed a design studio at “Sofproject”, the design organization of
Sofia Municipality. After her
retirement in 1986, she opened a private office and continued to practice. For two years, from 1991 to 1992,
Ninova worked again in Paris as a specialist in housing. In addition to her practice, she has
been an adjunct professor at Sofia Polytechnic sharing her expertise in housing
design and construction.
For her numerous
contributions to the profession Tsvetana Ninova has been recognized several
times. In 1981 she received first
prize at the Biennial of the International Union of Architects for her housing
estate “Mladost 4” in Sofia. The following year she was decorated with the order “Sts Cyril and
Methodius”. In 1983 she
received the gold badge of the Union of Bulgarian Architects and in 1986 the
order “Red Banner of Labor”. For her large housing estate “Beli Brezi”
(white birches), for which she won a national competition (1977), Ninova was
awarded the Silver Hexagon at the international competition “Habitation
Space” in Milan, Italy in 1980 and the Grand Prize of Sofia in 1983. At her exhibition commemorating fifty
years of professional practice (October 1998) Tsvetana Ninova was recognized by
the Union of Bulgarian Architects with its highest award, the Gold Badge with
Precious Stone.
Biographical information translated by Milka Bliznakov.
SCOPE AND CONTENT
The Tsvetana Ninova Architectural Drawings consist of a resume and 34 architectural drawings
(original ink drawings on lucid paper). This collection documents the design of the Railroad Station in Ikhtiman
(5 original drawings), located in Bulgaria and the design of Rest Shop
Facilities, located in Kolotino, Bulgaria (11 original drawings).
The collection also contains one original drawing documenting the design of a multi-family apartment house with commercial facilities located at the corner of Bulgaria, Topli dol and Poduevo Streets,
Bulgaria.
PROVENANCE
The material in the
collection was donated in the summer of 1998 by Tsvetana Ninova by way of Milka
Bliznakov to the International Archive of Women in Architecture housed in the
Special Collections Department of the University Libraries of Virginia Tech.
NOTE TO RESEARCHERS: Most of the material is labeled in the Hungarian
language.
INVENTORY
- Curriculum
Vitae
- 1971— Railroad
Station in Ikhtiman, Bulgaria.
(5) original drawings regarding the
preliminary design (ink on lucid paper) – (scale 1:500, 1:200)
- 1973-1975— Rest
shop facilities, Kolotino, Bulgaria.
(11) Original design and working
drawings (ink on lucid paper) – (scale 1:500, 1:50, 1:20, 1:10, 1:1) - 1994— Multi
family apartment house with commercial facilities on the ground floor (18
original ink drawings on lucid paper) – (scale 1:500, 1:100), located
at the corner of Bulgaria, Topli dol and Poduevo Streets, Bulgaria.
Processed by: Federica Goffi, Architectural Intern; Gerrianne
Schaad, Curator of Manuscripts, March 2000
Citation: Tsvetana Ninova Architectural Drawings, 1971-1994, MS
2000-006, Digital Library and Archives, Virginia Tech, University Libraries