We invite you to take a walk with us through the past IFactory year, illustrated by our faithful al nik (Alexandra Nikolova)! We have divided our achievements into several categories for convenience (we hope) – the international dimension of our work; Baba Residence and its manifestations in the three villages of Deleyna, Koshava, and Yasen; organizational achievements and events; and our social entreprenurial work and yearly donations.

2024 was a busy year, and some of the most important processes for us will reach their climax in June this year!

The artistic and creative-tourism production of Baba Residence 2024 is coming to fruition – the artists are working together with their curator Dima Stefanova to complete the installations and experiences, which celebrate the cultural and natural heritage of the three villages.

One of our favorite moments from last year’s Baba Residence was the creation of the designer flag that the residents (some of whom are designers) in the village of Deleyna made with great gratitude, playfulness, and curiosity and presented to the people of Deleyna at the end of their Residency.

Some other organizational achievements that deserve celebration and a self-pat on the back were:

• Alda Sigurðardóttir and Inga Jónsdóttir from the Gullkistan Center for Creativity represented our joint project “Revitalizing Villages through Creative Activities” at the Harvest Festival – 30 Years of EEA Cooperation in the Icelandic city of Kolaportið. Our village revitalization activities (artistic residencies in six northwestern villages, renovations of six cultural corners in them, countless cultural events, and the EMPATHEAST international forum in Vidin) were selected along with 49 other projects as a good example of fruitful cooperation between Icelandic and EU organizations.

• Expedition of the team and curator of Baba Residence Galina Dimitrova to Iceland, which included an exhibition of the artistic results of the Residence, a press conference in Reykjavik where we presented the project and the cultural-entrepreneurial model developed with Baba Residence.

• We managed to complete the second Access to Culture Index for 2023 (the first was for 2022) – our national representative study on consumption and access to culture in Bulgaria in partnership with the Observatory for the Economy of Culture and the Goethe Institute Bulgaria.

• We wrote the first Baba Residence handbook for organizing an artist residency, which is freely available online and in print.

As in the previous two years, our core team continues to consist of three members. We make no secret of the fact that it is becoming increasingly difficult to maintain a balance between the need and desire to do more together with the villages and communities we work with, and the reduction in the type of funding that can support a stable and well-paid team. Each of us continues to work part-time or full-time +1 or 2 other jobs.

That is why our social entrepreneurship activities with Babina Zadruga (elderly women from villages in the Baba Residence network) were not at their peak this year.

Nevertheless, we managed to contribute with additional income of BGN 5,463 for 27 women from villages in the Northwest and Ihtiman.

We are moving forward in search of more flexible forms of operation this year as well, in order to preserve the main connecting flames that make the existence of our Factory valuable!

Thank you for being with us!