"Sofia Breathes" or how city traffic gives way to art
Not long ago the Bulgarian capital city of Sofia used to be a clean city without many cars but these days the fresh air has been replaced by traffic exhaust pollution. The city has almost doubled in the past decades and looking for alternative solutions for providing citizens a breath of fresh air, the Sofia Breathes Festival was born. The festival takes place for the third consecutive year. Some of the streets downtown Sofia are closed for cars during the days of the festival, so one can see what the street looks without parked vehicles and see the artwork of various artists. During the festival traffic gives way to art. The start of this year’s edition was given on August 5th on the Tsar Ivan Shishman Street, as accent was put on visual art and movies.
“We showed three movies and there were even armchairs placed in the street, so that people could feel at home. Two of the movies were shown throughout the whole day, while a documentary about Sofia was shown in the evening. The film “What is that city?” shows life in Sofia the way it is. I was happy that one of the viewers, who was a German, wanted to use the film in his project.”
The art events in downtown Sofia were warmly welcomed by the citizens. Here is more from Sunni Danagu, who is one of the organizers of the festival.“Sofia is a city of 2 million and despite the vacation mood in August, there are many people who stay in the city in the summer months and enjoy such events. There are similar festivals in most of the big European cities. On August 12 there will be literary readings taking place in Angel Kanchev Street before the Pirotska Street turns into an open-air gallery for the works of artists, architects, and designers. Citizens would enjoy Bulgarian music and dances on Independence square on August 26th,” the organiser says and adds that the Sofia Breathes festival has been growing every year, now occupying not just one but 4 streets in the city.
Text: bnr.bg, Alexander Markov
Photo: bnr.bg