The 4^th edition of the Fotofabrika festival for contemporary photography is taking place in Sofia in the period May 2 – July 23. The platform presents photography as art and a social zone which is part of the modern urban environment. This year’s forum is entitled Closer.

The exhibition of Stoyan Nenov, the first Bulgarian photo reporter with a Pulitzer Prize was presented on Tuesday. At the same time the now traditional open door exhibition with photos of Reuters and Getty Images along the Bridge of Love at the National Palace of Culture can be seen with a selection of “Closer” shots.

Laureates of numerous prizes for photojournalism – Alex Majoli and Cristina García Rodero will be exclusive guests to the event. Its big unveiling will be on May 9 at Sofia City Art Gallery, when one of contemporary photography’s gurus Alex Majoli will present his exhibition, named Me, Myself & EU.

Head of the festival Emi Barouh underlined the social character of the initiative and outlined photography as the most widespread democratic art:

“We pictured this festival as a sort of a unification of social-political and visual vocabulary. The initial edition four years ago was entitled Protesting Man. The second was Marginal Man, the third – Conflicts. This year’s edition topic is Closer.

The Protesting Man was our strong start, displaying protests in Turkey, Egypt, Spain and Bulgaria. That was the rebellious face of those, who wouldn’t obey, but would rather be a part of the decision-making process. The relation with the second edition with the Marginal Man is that exactly those are the protesters – people who dare to live outside the mainstream.”

Emi Barouh also points out that photography is the most democratic of arts:

“I think it can make a passerby stop, compare, identify and think over what the photo displays. Everyone knows the famous phrase that often a picture says more than a thousand words. One doesn’t need an interpreter in front of the image, all we need is empathy. This makes photography a really powerful media. This is also the strength of our festival.”

Art expert Georgi Lozanov also draws a parallel between art and photography, outlining the priorities of this visual sphere:

“Photography is that tool which reacts most quickly and easily to whatever is happening around, it gives the chance of a different perspective, of comprehension. Photography is a mirror which sees a person inside, according to his or her identity and nature. Fotofabrika is a recognized festival with a face of its own. This art used to be quite aside from the interest of Bulgaria’s gallery owners, curators and people of art. We didn’t see those works at museums and galleries. Luckily, as of few years photography took its serious position in Sofia’s cultural life.”

ArtHall is the place where photography exhibitions are a priority. More from Georgi Lozanov:

“This festival uses photography to influence via its message the most problematic areas of our life. I see this festival as a precious thing due to the fact that here photography participates in the major cultural debates of contemporary times.”

The Art Center Bankya will display the incredible 1/320 exhibition of Reuters photojournalist Stoyan Nenov in the period May 2 – 14. The man is also the first Bulgarian awarded with Pulitzer. He has focused on people in motion, covering the drama of immigrants arriving to Europe.

Stoyan Nenov says that he is honored to participate in the largest platform for photography and gives us details on the Pulitzer photo:

“This photo was taken at Gevgelija in Macedonia, on the border with Greece, where two to three trains could be watched on a daily basis with people rushing to jump on. That was impossible. There were people with the departure of each train whom the Macedonian police tried to stop.”

The festival’s program envisages three major exhibitions and over ten accompanying events. Besides the Me, Myself & EU exhibition in the period May 9 – June 18, there will be another big surprise – a display of 30 of the most interesting photos of one of global humanity photography’s emblematic names – Robert Doisneau from the period 1945 – 1978. The place will be the Regional History Museum and the timeframe – May 15 – June 15.

The Vaska Emanuilova Gallery will host on May 15 – 28 the most provocative exhibition within the festival’s frameworks - Prof. Linn Schroeder’s Self-Portrait with Twins and One Breast, including a single photo only. The author will meet her audience in person at the gallery on May 20.

English version: Zhivko Stanchev