Overall

Vision Vision

Originality Originality

Technique Technique

Impact Impact

I'll start by saying that this is the monument on peak Buzludzha, the Balkan mountain range (a.k.a. Stara Planina) in Bulgaria. It is literally 30 minutes by car from where I was born and you can see it from afar. Not taking its meaning and history into account, the monument is quite magnificent in itself.The last time I went there it was falling apart but I've never seen it from the inside. It looks sad considering what it used to be (i.e. in these photos: [link] and [link] ).Speaking from the point of view of an insider to Bulgarian political affairs throughout the years since the fall of the Socialist regime, I must say that this photograph is a very vivid and symbolic representation of the current state of the country. It is very interesting how everything lies in ruins underneath the party's logo, which is the only thing that stays intact after all these years. In a way the photo represents the nature of the two kinds of people living in Bulgaria right now:1. The logo could be compared to the elderly people, who spent the larger part of their lives under the Socialist regime and who still consider this past to be better that the life they have now in democratic Bulgaria. They are always reminiscing, saying that back then everything was plentiful, well made and generally better than now. While these people are still alive, Bulgaria will always live in the shadow of its past.2. On the other hand, the ruins represent the resentment of the younger generations towards the Socialist regime. After the fall of this regime, everything that was even remotely related to it was left to rot, much like this monument itself, which has been steadily falling to ruins for the past 20 years.For those who are aware of the Buzludzha monument, this shot captures a large amount of symbolism at the same time showing that nothing is eternal, no matter how strong its roots are and how deep they go. Otherwise, socio-political significance aside, from a strictly visual point of view, the photograph is very beautiful and professionally made. It shows a lot of detail in vivid and contrasting colors, which in a very strange and interesting way gives life to the otherwise depressing view.My only remark is that perhaps the filters are a bit on the heavy side. Wonderful shot nonetheless!