The Art Gallery “Kiril Petrov” began its activity with a small exhibition in 1971. The collection, built over decades, preserves and promotes works by generations of artists from the mid-19th century to the present day.

Among the works are paintings by Nikolai Pavlovich, Ivan Mrkvička, Georgi Danchov, Jaroslav Věšín, Vladimir Dimitrov – The Master, Sirak Skitnik, Dimitar Boyadzhiev, Kiril Petrov, Dechko Uzunov, and Georgi Pavlov – Pavletto, as well as many other classics of Bulgarian visual art.

The gallery also features contemporary Bulgarian artists from the late 20th century, including Genko Genkov, Dimitar Kazakov – Neron, Svetlin Rusev, Emil Stoychev, and Georgi Bozhilov – Slona, among others.

The gallery’s collection also includes works by artists from Montana: Prof. Galilei Simeonov, Teodosy Antonov, Venelin Zahariev, Nikolay Penkov, Evgenia Kraicheva, and others.

According to specialists, the collection of paintings in the Art Gallery “Kiril Petrov” is one of the richest in the region. The overall collection comprises around 2,500 works, while the permanent exhibition in the newly opened building includes about 150 works, mainly classics of fine and applied arts.

Works in graphic art, painting, and small-scale sculpture present different stages in the development of Bulgarian visual art. Particularly impressive in artistic value is the collection of icons.

Since 2011, the Art Gallery has been a department of the Regional Historical Museum – Montana.