We’re excited to share some highlights from the two-day symposium Imagining Cities that took place on 18–19 July 2025 in Sofia. It brought together artists, researchers, and urbanists to explore how cities are shaped and imagined today through talks, workshops, and walks on themes like performance, mapping, speculative design, community, walking, memory, and informal infrastructures.
The symposium was inspired by Urban Storytelling School, an Erasmus+ partnership between Center for Social Vision (Sofia) and C*SPACE (Berlin), featuring projects, developed by its participants which we will tell you more about in future posts.
We were lucky to be joined by amazing practitioners from different countries and backgrounds, including Vilyana Milanova, Ginevra Ludovici, Flavio Michele, Desislava Petkova @dessislavapetkova, Andrea Yuliy Dragov @94ayd, Edanur Seçim @edanursecim, Angela Ka Ki Lee @haauarchi, Cherry Cheung, Anna Laganovska @samulsu, Caroline Tesner , Mihaela Ion, Dimitar Nikolov @djimitko, Iben Ravn and her team, Ivan Sanchez Alva, freakygreenfish @freakygreenfish, Hristo Kaloyanov, Kosara Keskinova @kosara_keskinova, Charlotte Coosemans and Haoyue Chen.
Thank you to everyone who came, contributed, and created this space for collective learning and imagination. Imagining Cities was a reminder that the city is not just a built environment, but also a story we write together.
Imagining cities is organized by the Blue Cube Foundation and Center for Social Vision
In partnership with Urban Storytelling School and C*Space Berlin.
Images by Rosina Pencheva, and own archive.
PRESENTATIONS
Vilyana Milanova Milanova – presentation of QuietGinevra Ludovici and Flavio Michele – performance-lecture Navigating TikTok as a City with freakygreenfishIvan Sanchez Alva– Lunar Palimpsest presentationMihaela Ion – presentation of the Romanian art sceneMihaela Ion – presentation of the Romanian art sceneMihaela Ion – presentation of the Romanian art sceneCaroline Tester – cultural accessibility presentationDimitar Nikolov – modes of contact through sculptureNavigating TikTok as a City with freakygreenfishCollaborative Documentary Workshop, tutored by Iben RavnVilyana Milanova Milanova – presentation of QuietVilyana Milanova Milanova – presentation of Quiet
WALKS
Desislava Petkova & Andrea Yuliy Dragov – sensory walkEdanur Seçim – collaborative zine walkshop Edanur Seçim – collaborative zine walkshop Anna Laganovska – site-specific walk methodologyAnna Laganovska – site-specific walk methodologyAnna Laganovska – site-specific walk methodologyAnna Laganovska – site-specific walk methodologyAngela Ka Ki Lee, Studio HAAU & Cherry Cheung – COUNTERFLOWAngela Ka Ki Lee, Studio HAAU & Cherry Cheung – COUNTERFLOWAngela Ka Ki Lee, Studio HAAU & Cherry Cheung – COUNTERFLOWHristo Kaloyanov – Lira GalleryHristo Kaloyanov – Lira Gallery
WORKSHOPS
Haoyue Chen – From the RuinsHaoyue Chen – From the RuinsHaoyue Chen – From the RuinsHaoyue Chen – From the RuinsCharlotte Coosemans, Remixing NeighbourhoodsCharlotte Coosemans, Remixing NeighbourhoodsCharlotte Coosemans, Remixing NeighbourhoodsCharlotte Coosemans, Remixing NeighbourhoodsCharlotte Coosemans, Remixing NeighbourhoodsKosara Keskinova – Dear Data inspired workshopKosara Keskinova – Dear Data inspired workshopKosara Keskinova – Dear Data inspired workshopKosara Keskinova – Dear Data inspired workshopKosara Keskinova – Dear Data inspired workshop
