Master Gencho Kanev

Gencho Kanev was born in the village of Genchevtsi, Tryavna region, in 1829. He received his initial literacy at the church school of St. Archangel Michael church. He learned the building trade under his father – the famous builder Kanyu Draganov (Kanyu Trevnali). The development of Gencho Kanev as a craftsman could be attributed not only to the harsh temper of his father, but also to his early acquaintance with the work and processes of the building trade. Starting as an apprentice and working his way up through the ranks of apprentice, assistant and chief assistant under architect Dimitar Sergiuv, Gencho Kanev became a foreman before he turned 30. In his independent career, he was a resourceful and inquisitive artist, embracing innovations to make his buildings strong and functional. He learned to read plans and be guided by them. He was masterful in his stonework on the facades and interiors of buildings, a technique he later abandoned in his work. His undisputed masterpiece is the Cathedral of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Varna, built on the idea of Prince Alexander Battenberg and designed by Arch. Ivan Petrovich Maas, St. Trinity Church in Sevlievo, the Church of  “St. St. Cyril and Methodius” in Svishtov and about 80 other churches, which reflect his aspiration to apply European baroque elements.

In the early period of his creative work, Gencho Kanev built under the influence of what he learned from the two masters – Dimitar Sergyuv and Nikola Fichev, but then he set out on completely new creative paths, improving and modernizing the construction of churches. In the 1860s he introduced the cruciform dome type of church building with a free-standing bell tower. To delineate domes, belfries, vaults, or other architectural elements in his designs, he used common household objects. His designs were outlined in different colours by the mural painter Tsanyu Zahariev. In this way, the church trustees got a complete picture of the building.  The first church built by Gencho Kanev was in the village of Irechekovo, Yambol region, and the last – in the town of Sozopol (1889) and in the town of Pomorie (1890). Nikola Fichev also met him during the construction of the bridge over the river Yantra at Byala. Between the two masters there was mutual respect and the division of two eras in construction – the Renaissance and the New /Modern/ Time.

Gencho Kanev preferred the construction of public buildings. He is credited with the construction of the new, modern type of two-storey solid school building, which continued to be applied even after the Liberation. His best achievement was the Renaissance school in Sopot, and one of his most significant school buildings was the Aprilov High School in Gabrovo. Its construction was begun in 1851 by another master, but in 1870 the work was taken over by the first master under a completely new design of his own, completing it in two years in a brilliant manner. Built in the manner of the Richelieu Lyceum, the building is an original creation of his, created in the spirit of Renaissance vernacular traditions.

Gencho Kanev was an excellent team leader and after the Liberation he remained a well-known entrepreneur. He restored some of the churches of his teacher Dimitar Sergiuv.   Masters such as Gencho Novakov, Pavel Kolev, Hristo Damyanov and others, whom he trained over the years, worked on his projects. He created his own master school, which took part in the construction of the modern appearance of many villages in the country.

 The master was robbed and killed on July 5, 1890 on his way by boat from Pomorie to Sozopol. He was buried on the shore at the village of Sarafovo, but later his relatives brought his remains to Tryavna.