site.btaBolhrad Invites Yambol Photographer to Take Photographs of Authentic Houses

Photographer Toti Badzhakov from Yambol will take photographs of authentic houses in Bolhrad Region in Ukraine, Petar Dimitrov, Head of the Bessarabia local Bulgarian Folk Dance Ensemble in Bolhrad, told BTA on Friday.

Dimitrov pointed out that the invitation to Badzhakov comes from Zhana Suslina, Director of the Culture, Youth and Sports Centre at the Bolhrad City Council. The hosts are familiar with him from his work filming a concert in January 2024, dedicated to the 10th anniversary of the establishment of the Bessarabia folk dance ensemble. Suslina was impressed by the representative calendars that he makes for Tundzha Municipality, with which Bolhrad is twinned, Dimitrov added.

"There are many old, authentic houses in Bolhrad Region. Their architecture is great and very diverse," he emphasized, adding that the influence of different traditions is felt there, including Russian, Moldovan, Romanian, Ukrainian and Bulgarian.

During his one-week stay in Ukraine between March 23 and 29, Badzhakov will also present the exhibition called Guardians of Tundzha. It is dedicated to the Kuker traditions in Yambol Municipality and was opened during the Kukerlandia International Masquerade Festival in Yambol.

The exhibition will also feature Kuker costumes, which were specially made for the Bessarabia folk dance ensemble, under a project funded by the Bulgarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, aimed at supporting Bulgarian communities abroad.

Photographer Toti Badzhakov is among the prominent young artists of Yambol Region, winning the two grand prizes of the Kukerlandia International Photo Contest in 2025. His works were distinguished among a total of 415 photographs submitted to the competition.