No Time For Losers seriеs

24 карата мрак / 24 Carat of Darkness - pencil, acrylic and pale gold on 300lb Fabriano Artistico paper

Size: 40 x 30 cm, Anton Terziev, 2020 Photo: © the artist. Courtesy the author. Yelena Isinbayeva's portrait

She is a Russian former pole vaulter. She is a two-time Olympic gold medalist (2004 and 2008), a three-time World Champion (2005, 2007 and 2013)

"I may have been misunderstood,' says Russia's Yelena Isinbayeva after her controversial remarks at the world championships in Moscow"

Title credit: Svetoslav Todorov - writer, editor, correspondent
from No Time For Losers series of drawings, paintings, object and photogprahy (2019-)

Цикълът рисунки No Time For Losers/ С губещите не се занимаваме е подготвителна част към бъдеща едноименна изложба. В нея определящ ще бъде интересът ми към популярните представи за успех и съвременните стратегии за неговото постигане, както и колко дава и колко взима този процес.

В случая използвам добре познатият, задължително улавян от спортните фотографи момент на триумф. Стоп-кадър, в който разглеждам ролевите взаимоотношения в оста награда-награден –награждаващ. Интересува ме още какво и кой конструира съдържанието на това понятие, като символ и метафора и какъв е неговият срок на годност.

24 карата мрак / 24 Carat of Darkness
from No Time For Losers series of drawings, paintings, object and photogprahy (2019-), pencil, acrylic and pale gold on 300lb Fabriano Artistico paper

Size: 30 x 23 cm, Anton Terziev, 2020 Photo: © the artist. Courtesy the author.

after Jessica Rossi's photography image. Rossi is a Italian flag-bearer, skeet shooting champion. She won the gold medal in the Women's Trap event at the 2012 Summer Olympics, where she scored a world record of 75 in the qualification and a world record of 99 in the final

Title credit: Svetoslav Todorov - wwriter, editor, correspondent

In the series No Time for Losers I examine just that – what it takes from you, what and whom you pay, who constructs the content of success as a symbol and metaphor, what is its shelf life? I do it through the well-known moment of triumph, mandatory for sport photographers. A freeze-frame, in which I comment on the role interrelations between the award, the awardee and the award presenter.

I hit the brakes on the rat race for quick, immediate, instagrammable success. This concept is like a tomb. A remarkable pantheon, which you furnish meticulously with awards, trophies in your CV and what not, to the last day of your life.

Whoever wants to be a „relevant participant in the processes“ knows that things like vulnerability, exposedness and sensitivity smell of failure, they don’t make you competitive on the market. Like in sports, whose direct aesthetics I borrow for my series.

From an early age, you have to run in the right lane or track. Lest you compete on top level but outside of the field, or even worse – out of the range of the cameras reporting the game from the pitch.

24 карата мрак / 24 Carat of Darkness
from No Time For Losers series of drawings, paintings, object and photogprahy (2019-), pencil and acrylic on 300lb Fabriano Artistico paper

Size: 21 x 33 cm, Anton Terziev, 2020 Photo: © the artist. Courtesy the author.

after photogprahy image of London 2012 Olympics, USA win women's team gymnastics

Aly Raisman - sexual assault survivor
Jordyn Wieber- sexual assault survivor
Kyla Ross - sexual assault survivor
Gabby Douglas - sexual assault survivor
McKayla Maroney - sexual assault survivor

Title credit: Svetoslav Todorov - - writer, editor, correspondent

In 24 Carat of Darkness, Anton Terziev reworks a celebratory photograph from the 2012 London Olympics—showing the victorious U.S. women’s gymnastics team biting their gold medals—into a stark meditation on the hidden cost of triumph. By isolating the athletes’ outlines against a looming black background, Terziev underscores the darkness behind their hard-won glory: each of these young women later revealed herself to be a survivor of sexual abuse. The artist’s pencil technique, with partially unfinished figures and vivid negative space, highlights the tension between the polished image of Olympic success and the traumatic reality beneath. As part of Terziev’s No Time For Losers series, the work invites reflection on the powerful dichotomy of public victory and private pain, ultimately challenging viewers to acknowledge the complexities that often go unspoken in the world of elite sports.

24 карата мрак / 24 Carat of Darkness
from No Time For Losers series of drawings, paintings, object and photogprahy (2019-), pencil and acrylic on 300lb Fabriano Artistico paper

Size: 30 x 40 cm, Anton Terziev, 2020. Photo: © the artist

after photogpraphy image of Team Russia bite their gold medals in the victory ceremony after the group all-around rhythmic gymnastics final at Wembley Arena during the London 2012

Anastasia Bliznyuk
Uliana Donskova
Ksenia Dudkina
Alina Makarenko
Anastasia Nazarenko
Karolina Sevastyanova

"I didn't know anuthing, i didn't knowthis world, this people. We were simplytransported from one country to onother." Karolina Sevastyanova

Russian gymnasts have won the rhythmic all-around in the last five Olympics and countless world and European titles in between. And almost all of this success has involved Viner-Usmanova - highly controvercial figure, dares us to see violence and pressure as love

Nicolai Nedelchev collection
Title credit: Svetoslav Todorov - writer, editor, correspondent

The Winner Takes It All /Всичко за победителя
from No Time For Losers series of drawings, paintings, object and photogprahy (2019-)
Framed size: 42x32cm, image size: 32x23cm, pencil on 300lb Fabriano Artistico paper, Anton Terziev, 2020 Photo: © the artist. Courtesy the author

Last shown at Success and Succession solo exhibition ot Balabanov's house, Plovdiv, Bulgaria, 2020

after Constantina Tomescu's photography image
Title credit: Svetoslav Todorov - writer, editor, correspondent

Anton Terziev’s The Winner Takes It All (pencil and pale gold on paper, 2019–ongoing) captures the momentary euphoria of athletic triumph while hinting at the psychological weight that victory can impose. Referencing a photographic image of Constantina Tomescu, Terziev zooms in on the athlete’s face as she bites her medal—a familiar, celebratory gesture that becomes laden with irony under his careful pencil work and subtle gold accents.

The controlled cross-hatching and delicate shading imbue the figure with lifelike intensity, while the faint golden sheen of the medal draws the viewer’s eye to the physical symbol of success. This duality—celebration tempered by unease—underscores Terziev’s broader theme in his No Time for Losers series: the societal pressure to achieve and the fragile pedestal upon which champions are placed. By juxtaposing the medal’s glimmer against the furrowed gaze of the athlete, Terziev deftly conveys both the timeless allure of winning and the shadows cast by a culture that measures worth solely through victory.

The Winner Takes It All /Всичко за победителя
from No Time For Losers series of drawings, paintings, object and photogprahy (2019-)

Size: 30 x 40 cm, pencil on 300 lb Fabriano Artistico paper, Anton Terziev, 2020 Photo: © the artist
Title credit: Svetoslav Todorov - writer, editor, correspondent. Collaborating since 2019

after Simone Biles's photography image. Biles is the gymnast with the most World medals (25) and most World gold medals (19). One of the many victims sexually abused by the former Olympic team physician, Larry Nassar. Systematically abused - mentally, physically and sexually

2021 Simone Biles Speaks Out On Championing Mental Health

Gaudenz B. Ruf collection

"No Time For Losers предлага алтернативен поглед към бързата популярност, феноменът на бързото изстрелване и внимание през последните няколко десетилетия, менталните травми, които настъпват в моментите, когато триумфът би трябвало да е безоблачен."
Светослав Тодоров - писател, редактор, кореспондент

24 карата мрак / 24 Carat of Darkness
from No Time For Losers series of drawings, paintings, object and photogprahy (2019-), pencil, acrylic and pale gold on 300lb Fabriano Artistico paper, Anton Terziev, Size: 30 x 40 cm, 2020 Photo: © the artist. Courtesy the author.

after Aliya Mustafina's photography image. Aliya Mustafina is one of the most renowned and successful artistic gymnasts of all time. She has a combined total of 45 Olympic, World and European Championship medals.

Title credit: Svetoslav Todorov - writer, editor, correspondent

Anton Terziev’s 24 Carat of Darkness (pencil and pale gold on paper, 2019–ongoing) distills the tension between the exhilaration of victory and the unsettling pressures that accompany it. As part of his No Time for Losers series—comprising drawings, objects, paintings, and photography—this work captures a champion’s moment of triumph with striking immediacy: a gold medal brought to her lips in a timeless gesture of victory.

Yet Terziev’s choice of a dark, inky background provides a stark contrast to the pale gold accents, suggesting that glory is never without its shadows. The faint gleam of the medal and the athlete’s determined gaze evoke not only the euphoria of success but also the weight of societal expectations, which measure a person’s worth by achievements alone. In this way, Terziev’s skillful interplay of pencil detail and gilded highlights conveys a nuanced commentary on the fragile line between celebration and burden. Ultimately, 24 Carat of Darkness stands as both a testament to the enduring allure of triumph and a sober reminder of the personal cost exacted by a world fixated on winning.

The Winner Takes It All /Всичко за победителя
from No Time For Losers series of drawings, paintings, object and photogprahy (2019-)
Size: 30 x 40 cm, pencil on 300lb fabriano Artistico paper, Anton Terziev, 2020 Photo: © the artist

Gaudenz B.Ruf collection

after Samantha Queck's photography Getty image, celebrates winning gold at Rio 2016; Samantha is Olympic gold medal hockey star. Subjected to online abuse days after suffering a miscarriage. Abused online after fans questioned her sporting knowledge despite winning being an Olympic gold medallist.

Title credit: Svetoslav Todorov - writer, editor, correspondent

The Winner Takes It All /Всичко за победителя
from No Time For Losers series of drawings, paintings, object and photogprahy (2019-), Framed Size: 42x32cm, Image Size: 32x21,5cm, pencil on 300lb Fabriano Artistico paper, Anton Terziev, 2020 Photo: © the artist. Private property

after Aly Raisman's photography image. Olympic gymnast Aly Raisman is among the young women sexually abused by a former USA Gymnastics team doctorDr Larry Nassar. The Heartbreaking Dark Side of Women's Gymnastics

Title credit: Svetoslav Todorov - writer, editor, correspondent

In this pencil drawing from his ongoing series No Time For Losers (2019–), Anton Terziev reinterprets a well-known photographic image of an Olympic gymnast—a figure who, despite her remarkable achievements, became emblematic of the dark reality behind elite women’s gymnastics. Terziev’s controlled yet expressive linework captures both the gymnast’s moment of triumph, as she playfully bites a gold medal, and the underlying tension in her eyes. This tension alludes to the hidden trauma she and others endured under an abusive system, reflecting the broader themes of survival, exploitation, and resilience in women’s sports.

Terziev’s approach highlights the collision of two narratives: the polished facade of Olympic glory and the personal cost of institutional failures. His nuanced pencil shading emphasizes the subject’s strength and vulnerability in equal measure, while the choice of medium—often associated with intimate studies—reinforces the intensely personal nature of the story. As part of No Time For Losers, the drawing underscores the series’ central preoccupation with winners who nonetheless grapple with profound, invisible battles. By juxtaposing the symbol of victory (the medal) with the gymnast’s complex emotional undertones, Terziev’s work serves as a poignant reminder that triumph and trauma can coexist in the same public moment.

My Teeth Are Finally Sharp / Зъбите ми са най-сетне остри - pencil, acrylic and pale gold on 300 lb Fabriano Artistico paper. Size: 72 х 71 сm, Anton Terziev, 2020 Photo: © the artist

after Alina Makarenko's photography image

Alina Andreevna Makarenko is a Russian group rhythmic gymnast. She is the 2012 Olympics Group All-around champion, the 2011 World Group All-around silver medalist, 2012 European Group All-around gold medalist and 2010 Youth Olympic Games Group All-around champion.

"Have you ever wanted to perform individually?Everyone then asked this question, asked Irina Viner-Usmanova why she did not want to make a “personal” person out of me."

from No Time For Losers series of drawings, paintings, object and photogprahy (2019-)

Title credit: Svetoslav Todorov - writer, editor, correspondent

From Russia With a Bite - pencil, acrylic and pale gold on 300lb Fabriano Artistico paper. Size: 78 x 56 cm, Anton Terziev, 2021 Photo: © the artist

after Ksenia Dudkina's photography image

"As long as you're standing on a pedestal - you're a winner, but as soon as you had gone down from it- you're no one to call you in any way"

She is the 2012 Olympics Group All-around champion, the 2011 World Group All-around silver medalist, 2013 World Group All-around bronze medalist, 2012 European Group All-around gold medalist, (2013, 2012) World Cup Final Group All-around champion and 2010 Youth Olympic Games Group All-around champion

from No Time For Losers series of drawings, paintings, object and photogprahy (2019-) Title credit: Svetoslav Todorov - writer, editor, correspondent
Last shown at RED exhibition, 9-21.01.2022, Arosita Gallery, Sofia, Bulgaria, curated by JPank

Nikolai Nedelchev collection

Life is Temporary, Gold Is Forever / Животът е до време, златото е завинаги
from No Time For Losers series of drawings, paintings, object and photogprahy (2019-), Size: 41,5 x 31,5 cm, pale gold and inc on 300lb Fabriano Artistico paper, Anton Terziev, 2020 Photo: © the artist. Courtesy the author
Title credit: Svetoslav Todorov - writer, editor, correspondent