‘The Living Art and Bulgarian-Italian Bridges of Friendship’—this is the exhibition that opens in the Prof. Vasil Gerov Hall of the ‘13 Centuries of Bulgaria’ National Endowment Fund at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday, 21 November 2023.
It was organised by the UNESCO Leonardo da Vinci Club, Sofia, to celebrate the 20th anniversary of its establishment.
The exhibition presents 25 photographs of pupils from the Atanas Dalchev Secondary School. The young artists were inspired by the medieval commune of Dozza, in Italy’s Emilia-Romagna region, which they visited earlier in 2023. Here, every two years, artists from around the world paint on numerous exterior walls.
‘We walked, as if bewitched, among these colourful houses, taking photographs with such thirst to immortalise the paintings that told legends, centuries-old traditions; expressed feelings, emotions full of beauty. We decided to share this beauty through the eyes of these young people and show you their photos, which are works of art in their own right. This exhibition is another bridge of friendship between Italy and Bulgaria, which we invite you to cross, celebrating with us the 20th anniversary of our Club’, said Mr Ruslan Dragostinov, co-founder of the UNESCO Leonardo da Vinci Club and Director of the Prof. Nikolay Raynov Specialist Secondary School of Fine Arts.
The event is under the patronage of the National Commission of the Republic of Bulgaria for UNESCO, the Italian Cultural Institute in Sofia, and the Honorary Consul of the Republic of Bulgaria in Emilia-Romagna.
The exhibition can be viewed in the Prof. Vasil Gerov Hall until 13 December 2023.
The UNESCO Leonardo da Vinci Club
Established in August 2003, the UNESCO Leonardo da Vinci Club is a bridge between Italy and Bulgaria. It is named after the renowned Italian Renaissance architect, inventor, engineer, sculptor, and artist; he symbolises the club as an expression of the universality of Leonardo’s interests, activities, and creative achievements.
The club’s main goal is to organise and become involved in national and international projects in the fields of education, science, and culture—objectives identical to the activities and priorities of NEF ‘13 Centuries of Bulgaria’, the only organisation of its kind in Bulgaria to enjoy the status of official relations with UNESCO. The club’s members naturally subscribe to the UNESCO ideal: ‘Since wars begin in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that the defences of peace must be constructed.’
The club is the initiator and organiser of various events: lectures on art and literature, musical evenings, exhibitions, meetings with local and international artists, conferences, and book publication.