Shining a spotlight on the Department of Physics, we were delighted to see last week Head of the Department of Physics Professor Ventsislav Valev and Lecturer Dr Kristina Rusimova honoured in Sofia's annual LUNAR Festival of Lights.
Images of the researchers were projected onto the side of one of the historic buildings lining Knyaz Aleksander I Square, one of several installations transforming Bulgaria's capital city into an open-air art gallery.
The installation, Midsummer Night Dreamers, celebrated British-Bulgarian collaboration through art, culture and technology. The visual spectacle saw poetry meet artificial intelligence, with inspiring verses by the Bulgarian poet Valeri Petrov, who first translated the works of Shakespeare into the Bulgarian language, playing over the light display.
The physicists were invited to take part by the British Embassy in Sofia as a way of celebrating the successes of British-Bulgarian connection, and inspiring more people to get involved with and pursue studies in STEM.
The Festival, which ran from 11-14 May this year, brought together artists from around the world to tell stories, provoke imaginations and surprise audiences with impressive 3D projection mapping and light installations.