23-24.05.2026
Speakers: Behzad K. Noori, Boris Buden, Edgar Schmitz, Michael Dutton, Magnus Bärtås, Maria Lind and Snejanka Mihaylova
Moderated by: Behzad K. Noori and Snejana Krasteva
Organized by: Museum of Humor and Satire, Gabrovo
Location: Library building, Technical University of Gabrovo, Hadji Dimitar Str N4
In preparation for the 26. Gabrovo Biennial of Humor and Satire in Art 2029, we invite you to take part in the 2-day transdisciplinary Symposium “Brieftopia: Archives of Futurity”.
The Symposium brings together artists, curators, scholars, and researchers from local and international contexts to collectively reflect on the concept of brieftopia, a term coined by Behzad K. Noori to describe fleeting yet tangible utopian moments that emerge within the connection between hope and hopelessness.
The Symposium will take place in relation to the exhibition that opened earlier this year, in March 2026, “Brieftopia: Art between Crisis and Imagination”, which explores hope as a fragile, paradoxical force that persists in direct connection to the imagination. Brieftopia proposes an archive of futurity as a brief moment when imagination and resistance encounter. The Symposium seeks to explore diverse notions of Brieftopian thinking and practices as a method of future investigation that resists monumentalisation.
The Symposium and the Exhibition together are the point of departure for planning the 2029 Gabrovo Biennale, curated by Snejana Krasteva and Behzad K. Noori, positioning Gabrovo as a site for experimental thought on imagination and the precarious politics of futurity. The both initiatives create a collective laboratory for rethinking futurity, and where Gabrovo becomes a site of practice of tangible future possibilities.
With the support of the Ministry of Culture of Republic of Bulgaria
Symposium Program (*subject to change):
| Saturday, May 23, 2026 (optional) *10:00–10:40 Curatorial tour of the exhibition “Brieftopia: Art Between Crises and Imagination” at the Museum of Humor and Satire 11:00–11:15 Arrival of guests at the library 11:15–11:20 Welcome by the Mayor, the Deputy Director of the Museum of Humor and Satire, and the moderators 11:20–12:00 Introduction and lecture by Behzad K. Noоri 12:00–12:40 Lecture by Boris Buden Coffee break 13:00–13:40 Presentation by Snejanka Mihaylova 13:40–14:40 Panel Discussion 1, followed by Q&A, moderated by Snejana Krasteva Lunch 15:30–16:10 Presentation by Magnus Bärtås 16:10–17:50 Presentation by Maria Lind 17:50–19:00 Panel Discussion 2, followed by Q&A, moderated by Behzad K. Noori |
| Sunday, May 24, 2026 10:00–10:15 Arrival of guests at the library 10:15–10:20 Introduction by the moderator 10:20–11:00 Presentation by Edgar Schmitz 11:00–11:40 Presentation by Michael Dutton 11:40–12:40 Panel Discussion 3, followed by Q&A, moderated by Snezhana Krasteva Lunch and screening, followed by a discussion (Q&A) of the film essay “Brioni and Necromantic Theatre” by Behzad K. Noori and Magnus Bärtås 14:00–15:00 Symposium summary, discussion with all participants, followed by Q&A, moderated by Snezhana Krasteva and Behzad K. Noori Free program / organized visits to cultural landmarks in Gabrovo *(optional) Curatorial tour of the exhibition “Brieftopia: Art Between Crises and Imagination” at the Museum of Humor and Satire Visit to the Regional Center for Contemporary Art “Christo and Jeanne-Claude”, Gabrovo; meeting with the Director, Ms. Margarita Dorovska Visit to the Regional Ethnographic Open-Air Museum “Etar” |