Monday, 14/01/2019 17:51 (GMT+7)
Bulgaria’s ancient town of Plovdiv on January 12th officially launched its year as the European Capital Culture under the motto: “We Are All Colours”.
(Source: AP)
Plovdiv, Bulgaria's second city, whose origins date back to the 12th century BC, is known for its Thracian, Roman, Medieval, Ottoman and communist heritage.
In an interview with Bulgarian National Radio, Mayor of Plovdiv Ivan Totev pointed out that more than 300 projects and 500 events are included in the program of Plovdiv - European Capital of Culture 2019.
“European Capital of Culture- an initiative of the European Union - is a unique project for Bulgaria which provides new opportunities for the development of the potential of the city and new international visibility and a perspective on Bulgarian culture as a whole,” the city’s authorities said on its official website.
An exhibition featuring fragments of the Berlin Wall painted by international artists opened to kick off the event.
Besides, hundreds of visitors were able to see around 30 fragments of the wall covered in “street art” or portraits of singers such as David Bowie, Iggy Pop and Lou Reed.
On September 5th, 2014, Plovdiv was selected to be the Bulgarian host of the European Capital of Culture 2019. This happened with the help of the Municipal Foundation “Plovdiv 2019”, a non-government organization, which was established in 2011 by Plovdiv’s City Council whose main objectives were to develop and to prepare Plovdiv’s bid book for European Capital of Culture 2019./.
Compiled by BTA