More Than 85,000 People Attended the LUNAR Festival in Sofia Over the Course of Four Evenings (PHOTOS)

More than 85,000 residents and visitors to Sofia attended the LUNAR festival over the four evenings from 17 to 20 September, Sofia Municipality said on September 21. This year’s edition, organised by Sofia Municipality and MP-STUDIO, was dedicated to the Day of the capital Sofia and featured an immersive video mapping competition and a special programme exploring the history and development of the city.

Seven artists and studios from six countries presented works created specifically for the architecture and scale of the Largo under the theme “Urban Pulse”. The competition programme featured works projected onto the facades of the Council of Ministers, the Parliament and the Presidency.

For the first time this year, the public took a direct part in selecting the winner, voting for their favourite among the competition entries. The most votes went to Chinese studio SKG+ for Pink Punk. The jury prize was awarded to Czech studio Metanoia Creatives for Incidence, recognised as the most impactful immersive work.

Among the competition entries, a special light show dedicated to Sofia was presented, prepared by the Sofia Municipality and MP-STUDIO in partnership with “Sofia Sketches”. More than 800 iconic images were brought to life on the facades of the Largo.

The programme was divided into four themes – “Sofia – City of Children”, “Green Sofia”, “Modern Sofia” and “Together in Sofia”. They showcased places, people and stories connected with the city’s parks, schools, culture, new spaces and communities.

“A city is alive when people have a reason to come together, when culture is part of everyday life and when familiar spaces can show us something new. LUNAR creates exactly these kinds of moments – bringing people together in the heart of Sofia and opening the city up to global art and new technologies,” Sofia Mayor Vasil Terziev said.

Photos: BTA

He said the organisers had sought through this year’s programme to present Sofia as a “city of children, green, modern and open to people”. The LUNAR festival was held over four evenings in the centre of the capital as part of events marking Sofia Day on 17 September.