Balgarianovinite.com The Burgas 2032 Foundation presented Burgas’ bid to become European Capital of Culture 2032 at the 42nd edition of the Apollonia Arts Festival on Monday. The event was held within the festival’s “The Price of Success” series and brought together representatives of the cultural sector, local government, and members of the team behind Plovdiv’s successful bid for the title in 2019.
Among those attending were Burgas Deputy Mayor for Culture Diana Savateva, Burgas 2032 Foundation Executive Director Ruska Boyadzhieva, Apollonia Foundation Executive Director Margarita Dimitrova, writer Georgi Bardarov, Toplocentrala Centre for Contemporary Arts Administrative Director Vesela Kondakova, and Stefan Stoyanov and Kiril Velchev of the Plovdiv 2019 Foundation.
Apollonia Foundation Executive Director Dimitrova said that winning the title would be “extremely significant” for Burgas and the entire region, including the smaller towns and communities surrounding the city.
“The Burgas 2032 Foundation certainly benefits from having such a major cultural institution as the Apollonia Festival stand behind our bid,” Ruska Boyadzhieva said.
Burgas Deputy Mayor Savateva said the city’s bid is being developed through an active dialogue with the other 12 municipalities involved. She stressed that the bid is not an initiative of the municipal administration or the mayor’s team, but “a bid by the community”.
Georgi Bardarov spoke about the role of culture in the contemporary world and its connection to demographic trends. He noted that Bulgaria has seen a tendency towards the “elitisation” of culture, despite the fact that mass education, the internet and new technologies have made cultural participation accessible to a much broader range of people. According to Bardarov, culture plays an important role both in preserving diversity and traditions in an increasingly globalised world and in bringing people closer together.
He also argued that culture can be a tool for addressing the demographic crisis. Depopulated areas, he said, can attract new residents if they have functioning institutions in education, healthcare and culture. As an example, Bardarov pointed to Burgas, where, in his view, the development of these three areas over the past nine years has helped attract young people and families. He described culture as one of the levers capable of reversing demographic trends.
Kiril Velchev of the Plovdiv 2019 Foundation stressed that the European Capital of Culture title has “enormous potential” and represents much more than a cultural programme. The value of the initiative, he said, can also be measured by its ability to improve the city as a place to live, create new spaces, and engage businesses, cultural organizations and citizens. Plovdiv’s experience shows that investment can generate additional economic value, while neglected and abandoned spaces can be given a new life. The most important outcome, Velchev said, is the sustainable process of development that remains after the year of the title has ended.
Stefan Stoyanov of the Plovdiv 2019 Foundation described culture as one of the mechanisms for attracting talent and stressed that one of the key challenges facing cities is to attract and retain talented people. He identified one of the most significant outcomes of Plovdiv 2019 as the transformation of the city’s confidence and image, from a declining and poorly positioned city into a desirable place to live, do business and visit.
“Focus on things that are realistic,” Vesela Kondakova from Toplocentrala advised the Burgas 2032 Foundation, emphasizing the importance of realistic planning and sustainable mechanisms for the development of the cultural sector.
The event also featured the announcement of the winners of the competition for Bulgaria’s participation in Creative Express 2026. Bulgarian Association of Communication Agencies and Art Directors Club of Europe Board Member Chavdar Kenarov announced the results. This year’s international forum will take place in Barcelona, with the winners travelling to the Spanish city in November.
The theme of the Bulgarian competition, Creative Express – Burgas 2026, was “Faces of Burgas”. Two projects were awarded third place – one by Bozhidar Bogdanov and Zhivko Bozdanski (Noble Graphics), and the other by Denitsa Raikova and Hani Sinno (The Huts Group Graphic). The jury awarded second place to Diana Peeva and Ivan Zhelyazkov (Noble Graphics). The winners of the competition, Ilona Zdravkova and Simeon Kozhuharov (We Are Human), received their certificates from Deputy Mayor Savateva.
The Apollonia Festival of Arts has been held since 1984. It is organised by the Apollonia Foundation, established in 1991. Every year, the Apollonia stages in Sozopol attract hundreds of artists and thousands of art enthusiasts from Bulgaria and around the world. The festival aims to preserve cultural traditions and support new talent in various art forms. This year’s programme includes more than 70 events in music, theatre, literature, film and visual arts. BTA is a media partner of the event and will take part in the “Price of Success” section with a presentation of the 12 issues of LIK magazine published from the previous edition of Apollonia to the present. The event will be held on September 1.
Burgas Presents Bid for European Capital of Culture 2032 at Apollonia 2026 THE NEWS FROM BULGARIA – NEWS AGENCY 2009-2025 2026-08-31 14:45:40
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