70. The Gabrovo Museum of Humor Bolsters Its Legacy of Political Satire Post-Communism

September 30th, 2019  |  11 mins 30 secs

bulgaria, museum of humor

To the extent that there was a Communist capital of humor in the last half of the 20th century, it was Gabrovo, Bulgaria. Situated in a valley of the Balkan mountains, the city prides itself on its unique brand of self-effacing humor. In 1972, the Museum House of Humor and Satire opened here, and the city celebrated political humor with people in Soviet block countries and even some invited Western guests.

Today, three decades after the collapse of Communism, the Museum House of Humor and Satire remains one of the region's most important cultural landmarks. The museum has had to reinvent itself to interpret not only a democratic Bulgaria, but a the global, meme-driven, and internet-forged culture most visitors live in.

I went to Gabrovo to visit museum director Margarita Dariskova, who describes how the museum's strengths in its early years—like knowing how to present political humor without arousing the interest of the authorities—inform how the museum thinks of its role in the world today.

54. Buzludzha Is Deteriorating. Brian Muthaliff Wants To Turn It Into A Winery.

November 19th, 2018  |  14 mins 8 secs

brian muthaliff, bulgaria, buzludzha, dora ivanova

High in the Balkan mountains, Buzludzha monument is deteriorating. Designed to emphasize the power and modernity of the Bulgarian Communist Party, Buzludzha is now at the center of a debate over how Bulgaria remembers its past.

Architect Brian Muthaliff wants the building to evolve along with Bulgaria. His master’s thesis on Buzludzha describes a re-adaption of the site to subvert the original intention of the architecture, including installing a winery and a theater.

Unlike architect Dora Ivanova’s Buzludzha Project, which we discussed at length in episode 47, Muthaliff’s plan only calls for a single, museum-like space. In this episode, we go in depth on what a museum means and what is the best path forward for this building and for Bulgaria.

51. Yulina Mihaylova Presents a Moral Lesson at the Sofia Jewish Museum of History

October 1st, 2018  |  12 mins 42 secs

bulgaria, yulina mihaylova

The Jewish Museum of History in Sofia, Bulgaria tells the full story of the Jewish people in Bulgaria from ancient Roman times to today. The museum takes on the complexities of the rescue of the Jews in Bulgaria from deportation to Nazi death camps during the Second World War.

49. Deyana Kostova Centers ‘The Little Man’ in War at the Bulgarian National Museum of Military History

September 3rd, 2018  |  10 mins 13 secs

bulgaria, bulgarian national museum of military history, deyana kostova

The campus of the Bulgarian National Museum of Military History in Sofia is defended on all sides by a garden of missiles and tanks. But as Director of Public relations Deyana Kostova points out, many of the exhibits inside focus on the consequences of war rather than the tools of warfare.

47. Buzludzha is Deteriorating. Dora Ivanova Wants To Turn It Into A Museum.

July 23rd, 2018  |  9 mins 59 secs

bulgaria, buzludzha, dora ivanova

High in the Bulgarian mountains, Buzludzha monument is deteriorating.

46. Vessela Gercheva Directs Playful Exhibits at Bulgaria’s First Children’s Museum

July 9th, 2018  |  10 mins 1 sec

bulgaria, muzeiko, vessela gercheva

There were no children’s museums in the Balkans before Muzeiko opened in Sofia, Bulgaria in 2015.

44. Vassil Makarinov Presents Technology and History at the Bulgarian Polytechnical Museum

June 11th, 2018  |  11 mins 27 secs

bulgaria, bulgarian national polytechnical museum, vassil makarinov

The Bulgarian National Polytechnical Museum is a science museum that also tells the story of Bulgarian and world history.

25. The Museum of Socialist Art in Sofia, Bulgaria is Figuring Out What to Do With All the Lenins

July 17th, 2017  |  8 mins 6 secs

bulgaria, elitsa terzieva, museum of socialist art, nikolai ushtavaliiski, statues

After the fall of communism in Bulgaria in 1989, statues of Bulgarian communist leaders, idealized revolutionary workers, and Lenins were taken down all over the county. Some of these statues are now in the Museum of Socialist Art in Sofia. Bulgaria doesn’t have a history museum that explores its communist past.

23. Museum-Metro Station Hybrids

June 5th, 2017  |  5 mins 53 secs

bulgaria, sofia

During the planning stages for the Sofia Metro in Bulgaria, ruins of an old Roman fortress and city wall were discovered at the network’s proposed Serdika station.