From traditional dance to T-shirt design: Inspiration from Bulgaria

In April, during the easter holiday, we were lucky to spend some time in Bulgaria. One of the highlights of our trip was a traditional Bulgarian performance in the village of Shiroka Laka. It was a lovely show, performed by students of the National School of Folklore Art for the 25th anniversary of the specialty "Bulgarian Dances". We witnessed beautiful music and traditional dance in the most beautiful and colorfull traditional costumes. 

The colors, patterns, and energy of the performance left a strong impression on me. Later, at home, scrolling through my photos and videos I felt inspired to capture that moment in my own way—through a drawing. I created an illustration of an iconic Bulgarian couple dressed in traditional clothing. I started with pencil and paper on the back of an old piece of paper. And strolled through Pinterest looking for nice styles to maken iconic figures. And ended up with an idea for a guy with a big moustache and a woman with a colourful headscarf. After two or three sketches I found myself behind my computer digitizing my Bulgarian couple. The piece turned out even better than I expected!

In fact, I love the drawing so much that I'm now exploring the idea of turning it into a T-shirt design. I think it would be a fun and unique way to share a little piece of Bulgarian culture, interpreted through my own artistic lens.

I am currently investigating whether I will digitize a hand painted version or stick with the fully digital version. So, stay tuned—I’ll be happy to share updates if this turns into a wearable piece of art!