Sofia, July 19 (BTA) - An open-air festival at Buzludzha Peak in
 July 23 to 25 will raise money for the preservation of the
mosaic on the outside of the eponymous monument, the Buzludzha
Project Foundation which organizes the event said. The festival
is organized in partnership with Bar Dak-2, Malin "Monti"
Milanov, with the support of the Municipality of Kazanluk,
partners, and volunteers.

The Buzludzha Monument, originally named the Monument House of
the Bulgarian Communist Party, was built on Buzludzha Peak in
central Bulgaria by the Bulgarian communist government and
inaugurated in 1981. It commemorates events of 1891, when a
group of socialists led by Dimitar Blagoev assembled secretly in
 the area to form an organized socialist movement that led to
the founding of the Bulgarian Social Democratic Party, a
forerunner of the Bulgarian Communist Party, which after the
democratic changes in 1989 became the Bulgarian Socialist Party.
 

The open-air festival, mottoed, "Music for Mosaics," will be
held in the meadow around the Buzludzha Hut.

According to the Buzludzha Project Foundation, the Buzludzha
Peak (today the Hadzhi Dimitar Peak) has a profound significance
 to Bulgarian history and national identity due to the dramatic
and diverse events that have taken place there since the
mid-19th century. In 1959 the government decided to launch a
contest to design a memorial on Buzludzha Peak, in recognition
of its significance. This monument was intended to be larger and
 more impressive than any other.

The organizers plan Buzludzha Open Fest 2021 as an event that
caters to the need for sun, mountain, music, culture, delicious
food, and fun activities. The event will even have a designated
camping area.

The proceeds from the festival will be used in the conservation
efforts of the Buzludzha Monument, and the current goal is to
raise BGN 64,000 for the protection of the mosaics in the outer
ring.

The event is not connected to political goals.

A three-day ticket costs 35 leva, and a one-day pass, 25 leva.
The seventh ticket for a set of six purchased is free. Children
under ten years are admitted free. Tickets can be purchases on
site, or on Evedo, EPayGo, or at Easy Pay outlets. The camping
for the duration of the festival is free.

The festival is the culmination of the presentation of the
"Conservation Management Plan" of the Buzludzha Monument which
is the result of two years of work by an international team of
experts. The results will be presented for the first time within
 the festival, at an international conference on dissonant
heritage which will be held on July 22 and 23 at the Museum of
History in Kazanluk.

The latest research of the Buzludzha Monument demonstrated that
the most valuable and simultaneously most endangered element of
the monument are the 924 sq m of mosaics. Thanks to the Keeping
it Modern Program of the Getty Foundation thanks to which USD
60,000 in funding was obtained, the mosaics were stabilized -
the first implemented conservation measure at Buzludzha.

An international team of restorers from the National Academy of
Art in Sofia, the Technical University of Munich, the Bern
University of the Arts and the Diadrasis NGO from Athens
collaborated to implement the project. Volunteers supported the
process.

More information and photos of the restoration works can be
accessed at the website of the Buzludzha Project Foundation,
www.buzludzha-project.com. NV/ZH