VFU "CHERNORIZETS HRABAR" - HOST OF A SYMPOSIUM AND EXHIBITION IN PARTNERSHIP WITH ISTANBUL BEYKENT UNIVERSITY
24 february 2026
Varna Free University "Chernorizets Hrabar" will host a symposium and exhibition entitled "Water: Source of Life, Heritage of the Past, Assurance of the Future", which will be held in the period 25–28 February 2026. The event is being implemented in partnership with Istanbul Beykent University (Turkey), at the initiative of the Faculty of Fine Arts at the Turkish university. The forum will bring together lecturers, researchers, artists, students and doctoral students, united by the idea of exploring water as a natural, cultural and artistic phenomenon.
The opening of the symposium will take place on 26 February 2026 at Educational and Sports Complex 3 on the campus of VFU "Chernorizets Hrabar". Among the official guests from the Turkish side will be Prof. Volkan Yongel, PhD, Rector of Istanbul Beykent University, Prof. Hamdi Unal – Dean of the Faculty of Fine Arts and Chairman of the Symposium, as well as Prof. Hüsümetin Koçan, PhD – Honorary Artist of the Forum. The programme also includes Cem Agelos Justüner from the PINELO Art Gallery, curator of the exhibition.
VFU "Chernorizets Hrabar" will be represented at the opening and the scientific sessions by Assoc. Prof. Eleonora Tankova, PhD - Vice-Rector of the University, Assoc. Prof. Rositsa Petkova-Slipets, PhD - Dean of the Faculty of Architecture, and Assoc. Prof. Kapka Manasieva, PhD - Dean of the Faculty of Arts. The programme includes academic sessions, discussions, meetings between the faculty leaderships, as well as accompanying cultural events.
The symposium focuses on the cultural, ecological and artistic significance of water, viewed from a multidisciplinary perspective. The exhibition, part of the forum, will present works by established and young authors inspired by the theme of water as a source of life and a symbol of memory and the future.
By hosting this forum, VFU "Chernorizets Hrabar" affirms its active international policy and its role as a platform for dialogue between education, science and art. The partnership with Istanbul Beykent University is another step in expanding academic cooperation and cultural exchange between Bulgaria and Turkey.
The opening of the symposium will take place on 26 February 2026 at Educational and Sports Complex 3 on the campus of VFU "Chernorizets Hrabar". Among the official guests from the Turkish side will be Prof. Volkan Yongel, PhD, Rector of Istanbul Beykent University, Prof. Hamdi Unal – Dean of the Faculty of Fine Arts and Chairman of the Symposium, as well as Prof. Hüsümetin Koçan, PhD – Honorary Artist of the Forum. The programme also includes Cem Agelos Justüner from the PINELO Art Gallery, curator of the exhibition.
VFU "Chernorizets Hrabar" will be represented at the opening and the scientific sessions by Assoc. Prof. Eleonora Tankova, PhD - Vice-Rector of the University, Assoc. Prof. Rositsa Petkova-Slipets, PhD - Dean of the Faculty of Architecture, and Assoc. Prof. Kapka Manasieva, PhD - Dean of the Faculty of Arts. The programme includes academic sessions, discussions, meetings between the faculty leaderships, as well as accompanying cultural events.
The symposium focuses on the cultural, ecological and artistic significance of water, viewed from a multidisciplinary perspective. The exhibition, part of the forum, will present works by established and young authors inspired by the theme of water as a source of life and a symbol of memory and the future.
By hosting this forum, VFU "Chernorizets Hrabar" affirms its active international policy and its role as a platform for dialogue between education, science and art. The partnership with Istanbul Beykent University is another step in expanding academic cooperation and cultural exchange between Bulgaria and Turkey.