Drawing in 35 Secondary School “Dobri Voynikov” in Sofia  |  12 May 2018

12 children and youngsters from 35 Secondary School “Dobri Voynikov” in Sofia yesterday worked together to transform the environment in which they learn and spend quite a while of their life. Using brushes and dyes, they created 10 interesting colorful fields. We contacted the professor of art, Mr. Jordan Coralov, who accepted the idea of painting at their school. Every Saturday lessons are held in the school with children whose hobby is drawing. The given task, to explore embroidery and choose their models for painting in the yard of the school, awakens not only the curiosity, but also their creativity. One of the youngsters decides to develop the motifs he encounters in the embroidery and make a modern reading by making an installation: a dragon on whose body elements characteristic to the embroidery repeat and whose tail is wrapped around one of the trash cans. Happily, parents also joined.

“Practice has proven that if we are provoked and involve in a specific task related to the space we inhabit, it becomes important for us and consequently we are more willing to look after its preservation and good management,” says Pepa Peneva, co-founder of “Open Space” foundation. “Our experience throughout the years has proven that if we live in a beautiful environment, if it is colorful and interesting around us, our own creativity is provoked and we start thinking «What can I do and contribute myself to make it even better?». The effect of the snowball can undoubtedly be seen here as well”.

Since 2014 “Open Space” foundation has launched an initiative in Sofia for artistic intervention at public spaces. Benches are being painted with the purpose to present books and their authors. Nine transformer stations in Sofia were painted, after which vandals stopped scratching on them.

We made a beautiful environment in Center “Peace” and the center for accommodation of refugees “Voenna Rampa” in Sofia where children, youngsters and parents receive training, support and development assistance.

Now we want to go even further: link aesthetic and responsible behavior to preserve the environment around “art objects”. By creating positive emotions towards the bins, we want to provoke people and use them. By turning them into colorful spots – they will easily be distinguished from the surroundings and will provoke people to make an effort to keep their waste to the next color point instead of throwing it into the street.

In the year of cultural heritage, we chose the embroidery as a provocation to the young artists. The complexity and effort necessary for their workmanship draw our attention and make us reflect on our own efforts in everyday life. Through the action we have started, we tell the people around us, “If the trash can be so beautiful, why should the space around it be ugly and repulsive?“.  Several Sofia schools are involved in our initiative. 35 Secondary School “Dobri Voynikov” in Sofia  is the first one. Here are moments from the working process:

The project is funded under the “Culture 2018” Program of Sofia Municipality. Particiants: children, youth and teacher of painting. Also: young painters what we have being worked since 2014 and volunteers of European program “Erasmus+”