Европейската нощ на музеите в София
The European Night of Museums in Sofia

Summary/Abstract: The subject of the present study, entitled The European Night of Museums in Sofia, is the idea behind the appearance of this initiative, as well as its implementation in Sofia since 2006. The initiative began in France. In 1999, at the very end of the 20th century, France’s Ministry of Culture and Communications initiated its creation. The goal was to stimulate the public’s interest in galleries and museums, in their collections and exhibits, and in their work as significant cultural institutions that make a fundamental contribution to the preservation and popularization of cultural heritage. The event always takes place on May 18, which has been designated International Museums Day. May 18, 2006 marked the beginning of this initiative in Sofia. At that time the program included four museums and galleries – the National Gallery for Foreign Art (NGFA), the National Archaeological Museum (NAM), the National Art Gallery (NAG) and the Sofia City Art Gallery (SCAG). The first steps taken in the organization of the event were timid – there were no specially prepared exhibits; instead, Sofia’s museums and galleries counted on the public’s interests in their permanent collections. The emphasis was on activities not typical for these artistic spaces. This nevertheless constituted a beginning. In the following year, 2007, many more museums and galleries in Sofia joined the event, which attracted a large audience. Various musical and dance performances, chamber concerts, demonstrations of sound effects with percussion, and film projections were included in the Night of Museums program at NAM, NGFA, SCAG, the Ethnographic Museum, the National Polytechnic Museum, the Museum of Land and People, and the Boris Hristov Musical Center. This year the Night of Museums took place on May 17 and was under the auspices of the French Cultural Institute in Sofia. The third annual event attracted ever more popularity, especially with a younger audience; new museums and galleries participated along with those from previous years. For the first time, this year’s edition of the Night of Museums featured several exhibits that were specially prepared for this holiday of art on a European scale. These included the exhibits Monuments of Religious Art from the 14th-19th Centuries at NAM, Sofia Undergrond/ САМ at the Association of Bulgarian Artists gallery, the display of works by Stanislav Pamukchiev and Kiril Kuzmanov at the NGFA and the Smokestacks +++ project by Dobromir Georgiev at NAG.

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