A Capital at Crossroads: Sofia, Bulgaria activates cultural participation to become a leading creative European city

by Dr. Petya Koleva and Elisa Calosi

June 2011, an art group called Destructive Creation transformed one of the many monuments dedicated to the Russian army in the culturally rich capital of Bulgaria. ‘Keep up with the times’ was inscribed at the feet of the soldiers converted into comic characters (Santa Claus, the Joker etc.). This subversive public intervention shed an ironic look on changes affecting Bulgaria, like globalization and the pervasive presence of the neoliberal economy. Today, a quarter of a century after the fall of the Berlin Wall and the consequent end of the socialist era, the need to keep abreast with change and stay aware of how global developments affect local contexts remains a topical message.

Please find here the Full Article published by Catalyst review.