Signs of Sofia: I Want to Believe that I Give a New Sip of Art in Sofia

*This interview originally appeared on the website uspelite.bg on January 18, 2019

Da Vidci says he does not want his own name to be heard. He wants his art to speak for himself more strongly. So this article is not about him, but about Signs of Sofia.

What does Sofia look like in your eyes?

I'm not sure from which year is the song in which Bogdana Karadocheva sings about Sofia, but it is still up to date - both dirty and dusty, and at times even dreadful! The joke aside, there are many positive nuances in recent years that should not be left behind - the very fact that there are so many foreigners in the streets is proof that we are heading in the right direction - the government still has think whether all of this is happening at the desired pace, and for us as a society - what can we do to speed up these processes?

Anyway. Who are you?

I use the artistic pseudonym Da Vidci and for several years I have been redesigning the street signs in Sofia with the help of stickers with the idea to make the city happier. When I'm not doing my hobbies, I spend my time on project management in clinical trials. I usually plan and create myself, but I can not help but admit that I often consult opinion with my closest friends.

Behind every art is a story, tell that of Signs of Sofia.

It all started with my desire to make my foreign friends (and the guests of the capital as a whole) look with another eye of Sofia and remember it not only with the dirty air, the congestion and the cliche places in the center. The idea with the signs was inspired from street artists in Florence and Paris, where I first saw traffic signs as a means of expression.

Eventually, I even had the pleasure to meet some of the artists in question, I am still in touch with some. Nearly a year ago, I decided to collect all my sign photos on Facebook's Signs of Sofia page and, to my great happiness, they began to gain more and more popularity.

We have heard that, in addition to social networks, you also present your art in other ways. Tell a little more about your show.

It all started quite spontaneously - my friend owns the already mentioned space SeeMeOn 29. I personally had not planned such a show, but after he gave me the idea as a joke, I said to myself - why not. We put a lot of effort into the preparation, the room itself was transformed into a metropolitan boulevard where the photographs of the signs were like in their own natural habitat.

Many people came to the opening, interest did not decrease in the days that followed - the whole exhibition and everything related to it, which I had been very great experience and I fell in love with it even more.

New Year's holidays passed recently. We often want things, set new goals. What are the goals of Signs of Sofia?

I would not say that I have a strictly built plan in my head to follow. I try not to bother with expectations, it all happens spontaneously, and perhaps that is exactly what makes every step of this adventure so emotional to me.

All I intend to do in the near future is to get in touch with the Metropolitan Municipality in an attempt to find common ground to popularize my occupation, and through it - to the city itself. If I get there, I'm sure I'll need some help, so it's no surprise to have new additions to the team.

We need your support so Novinite.com can keep delivering news and information about Bulgaria! Thank you!