The World Needs The Young

To The Artworks

On February 22, 2023, at 6:30 p.m., the exhibition of digital drawings with augmented reality "The world needs the young" will open in the Largo Art Gallery. The authors of the project are from the Tarnovo art group Co-Interaction, including Svetoslav Kosev and Simeon Zhelev - authors of the digital works, and Atanas Markov – author of the augmented reality application. The project is implemented with the financial support of the National Culture Fund under the "Program for the Restoration and Development of Private Cultural Organizations".

Who are the authors of the project?
In the exhibition at Largo Gallery the works have two states - real, which viewers will be able to see hanging on the walls in the gallery, and virtual - which they will be able to see through a special application on their phones or tablets. The three artists created the Co-Interaction art group a few years ago, whose activity is aimed at the realization of projects that include the use of high-tech means. In the current project, Svetoslav Kosev and Simeon Zhelev are the creators of a series of digital drawings on the subject, as well as the visual material for augmented reality – moving objects and fractal animation. Atanas Markov is the author of the augmented reality application, through which the projects are visualized interactively.

The Millennial, Zet and Alpha generations - who is behind these names?
Generations Millennial, Zet, Alpha - these are not just names. Behind these qualifications, which have become fashionable in the new century, stands our future - the future of individual countries, of society, of our planet. Because behind these names are our children with their dreams, excitement, aspirations, priorities, but also with their problems, difficulties, insecurities. But above all, behind these names are other, different people - with a new, completely different value system, a new, different way of thinking, different priorities. Young people, born after 1990, are familiar with technology, the Internet, computer games, virtual reality, communication in social networks. What is important to us is not important to them, what is valuable to us is meaningless to them, our achievements are a burden to them. Generational conflict? Not only.

What is the theme of the exhibition?
The theme of the exhibition is related to the problems of professional realization of modern young people. In the two decades of the new century, not only in Bulgaria, but also in European countries, the trend of disbelief among young people in their future, in their opportunities to find work and professional realization upon completion of their education, is increasingly noticeable. More and more psychologists, sociologists, social workers, specialists in the field of HR and employment are commenting on the inertia, disinterest of young people in their own future, their often unrealistic expectations from their start in life.

Young people do not want to start work immediately after graduation because they lack confidence in themselves, employers lack confidence in them, they have unrealistically high starting expectations, and at the same time they cannot find a place where they can be fulfilled. This creates in them the feeling that they are not needed by society, that they are unsuitable because that is how the world is structured, that the world is not a hospitable place for young people. This disbelief and skepticism leads to inertia, hopelessness and the creation of a marginalized stratum of young people without prospects. Discussions on this topic in society are sporadic, forever displaced by some other, more important and urgent problem - war, pandemic, etc. In the field of visual arts, the topic also seems not to be sufficiently addressed or interpreted through the creation of creative products - exhibitions or other projects. And in fact, the future of countries, of society, of the world is closely related and entirely dependent precisely on the successful inclusion of young people in social development.

How will the current project develop?
The series of drawings by Svetoslav Kosev and Simeon Zhelev and the added reality to them are dedicated to the topic of inclusion, to the search for points of contact. The creators of the project hope that the exhibition will provoke reflection, discussions and attract the attention of young people, but also of society as a whole. After its presentation in the Largo gallery, the exhibition will be shown in an urban environment in Varna and in Veliko Tarnovo and will visit various art schools in the country. Through the works in the exhibition, the artists present their interpretation of the theme of the realization and professional future of young people, their dreams, their aspirations and what excites them. The exhibition is a generator of many questions - to what extent Bulgarian society focuses and successfully identifies the problems of young people, to what extent is it willing to seek solutions to their problems, where is the intersection of their way of thinking and their value system with the reality of our time.

What is the purpose of the project?
The topic of the successful inclusion of the young generation in society with all its needs and requirements is endless, and we do not think that the implementation of the project will lead to their solution. Rather, its purpose is to sharpen the focus of public attention on the problems, needs and dreams of young people in a different, non-traditional way - through the prism of the creator.

Augmented reality in the works of Svetoslav Kosev and Simeon Zhelev can also be seen on computer screens by anyone who downloads the application XXAR created by Atanas Markov from Google Play and the Apple Store to their phone and scans through it the photos of the works on the website of Largo Art Gallery.

We are waiting for you at the opening with the participation of the three artists on February 22, 2023 at 18:30 at Largo Art Gallery, Varna, 8 Han Krum Street. See more about the artists in their profiles on the gallery website.

Nelly Valcheva, gallerist