A forum for contemporary art and culture
Wide Art
Forum’26
7 November 2026
Toplocentrala, Sofia
Tickets
Speakers.
Topic
Transformation always takes time and energy — art, society and other surprises
Time
14:10–14:30
Topic
Art for change — when imagination becomes action
Time
14:30–14:50
Topic
Beyond the Object
Time
15:40–16:00
Topic
How many forms can one idea take? Multidisciplinary art today
Time
16:00–16:20
Topic
Visual storytelling: shaping space and time
Time
17:00–17:20
Radoslav Mehandzhiyski, Teodora Konstantinova
Art historians, curators and founders of Art & Culture Today, Wide Art Forum and Imago International Artist Residency
Biography
Topic
Emotional memory and artificial intelligence: conflict or collaboration in the creative process?
Time
17:20–17:40
Programme
14:00–14:10
Opening and introduction
14:10–14:30
Pravdoliub Ivanov
Transformation always takes time and energy — art, society and other surprises
A brief, fast-paced look at what I do, where I started, what has changed, and why I don't know what my next artwork will be.
14:30–14:50
Ana Alexieva
Art for change — when imagination becomes action
What if art does more than make us feel? What if it helps us understand, connect and act? For more than 10 years, the global creative studio Fine Acts has experimented with different approaches to social change, turning complex issues into stories, images and experiences that inspire empathy, curiosity, hope and engagement. Through specific Fine Acts campaigns and projects, we'll explore how creativity, creative play and experimentation can open new spaces for imagination, conversation and action.
14:50–15:20
Pravdoliub Ivanov, Ana Alexieva, Radoslav Mehandzhiyski, Teodora Konstantinova
Open discussion with the audience
15:20–15:40
Break
15:40–16:00
Nikolay Bozhilov
Beyond the Object
What happens when design moves beyond function and an object becomes a form, a sculpture or an experience? In this talk, Nikolay Bozhilov will present his approach to the intersection of fashion design, art, material and performance. Through his own projects, he'll explore how form, material and space can transform an object's role and make it a vehicle for ideas and experiences.
16:00–16:20
Kosta Karakashyan
How many forms can one idea take? Multidisciplinary art today
How can a single spark of inspiration move from the body to the screen, across the stage and into the space around us? Kosta Karakashyan will share how he combines film, choreography and immersive experiences to connect with audiences' emotions and explore themes of identity, empathy and social change. Using examples from his own work, he'll consider how an idea finds its form and why a growing number of artists are turning to multidisciplinary approaches.
16:20–16:40
Nikolay Bozhilov, Kosta Karakashyan, Radoslav Mehandzhiyski, Teodora Konstantinova
Open discussion with the audience
16:40–17:00
Break
17:00–17:20
Yulian Tabakov
Visual storytelling: shaping space and time
A glimpse behind the scenes of my search for the means to express an idea or share thoughts through the work I make. From shaping space in galleries until the exhibition itself becomes the main artwork, to working with time on stage and screen, I seek to bring the viewer into a particular state, invite them to immerse themselves in the work, and connect with it intellectually and emotionally.
17:20–17:40
Radoslav Mehandzhiyski, Teodora Konstantinova
Emotional memory and artificial intelligence: conflict or collaboration in the creative process?
As artificial intelligence becomes increasingly involved in creative processes, Teodora and Radoslav focus on what technology can reproduce but cannot experience: personal memory, emotional vulnerability and the unique path of an individual life.
17:40–18:10
Yulian Tabakov, Radoslav Mehandzhiyski, Teodora Konstantinova
Open discussion with the audience
Partners
Pravdoliub Ivanov
Visual artist
Born in Plovdiv, he lives and works in Sofia. He graduated from the Academy of Art, where he taught from 1995 to 2025. He holds a doctorate in the arts and has participated in international exhibitions and biennials. His works are held by the Centre Pompidou; Neues Museum in Nuremberg; Arter in Istanbul; the Arsenal Collection in Białystok; and the National Gallery and Sofia City Art Gallery.
Ana Alexieva
Programme Director, Fine Acts
Ana Alexieva is Programme Director at Fine Acts. She holds bachelor's and master's degrees in media and gender studies from Ruhr University in Germany and Utrecht University in the Netherlands, as well as an additional qualification from Babson College in the USA. She began her professional career as a documentary film producer and has more than 15 years of experience in the European cultural sector. She was included in Forbes Bulgaria's 30 Under 30 list and is an alumna of WEF Global Shapers, the Global Cultural Leadership Programme and the US State Department's YTILI programme.
Nikolay Bozhilov
Fashion designer and lecturer at the National Academy of Art
Nikolay Bozhilov is a designer and artist working at the intersection of fashion, art and experimental design. His practice explores form, material, the body and space through fashion, sculpture, installations and performance. He is a lecturer at the National Academy of Art and the recipient of numerous national and international awards.
Kosta Karakashyan
Director, producer and choreographer
Kosta Karakashyan is a director, screenwriter and choreographer working across film, theatre and immersive experiences. He was named to Forbes 30 Under 30 Europe, and his work has been featured by NOWNESS, The New Yorker, The Guardian, ELLE, Bloomberg, BBC Radio and Radio Free Europe. He is a Berlinale Talents alumnus and a member of the European Film Academy. After working as a choreographer and dancer on Dancing with the Stars Vietnam, he graduated from Columbia University in New York and directed projects for Calvin Klein, H&M and Greenpeace. His aesthetic combines the tenderness and vulnerability of the moving body with a contemporary visual sensibility that brings together cinema, fashion and pop culture.
Yulian Tabakov
Visual artist
Yulian Tabakov is an artist working in the performing, audiovisual and visual arts, as well as illustration. He explores visual storytelling and communication through space, form and time, developing a distinct visual vocabulary for each project. Since 2002, he has been based in Sweden and Bulgaria and has worked on more than 80 theatre, opera and film productions across Europe, Asia and Africa. Since 2011, he has developed his own projects in the visual arts and documentary film.
Radoslav Mehandzhiyski, Teodora Konstantinova
Art historians, curators and founders of Art & Culture Today, Wide Art Forum and Imago International Artist Residency
Teodora Konstantinova and Radoslav Mehandzhiyski are art historians, curators and founders of Art & Culture Today (2016), Wide Art Forum (2023) and Imago International Artist Residency (2019). Art & Culture Today is a principal partner of Sofia Art Fair.
We created Art & Culture Today and Wide Art Forum with the mission of building an environment for meaningful exchange between a wider, non-specialist audience and the world of contemporary art and culture.