Meet the co-founders: Veli L. I.

Today we’ll be introducing Veli – one of our co-founders and member of the board.

What inspired you to co-found Creatosphere, and what do you hope to achieve through this organization?

Inspire? I was drawn into this initiative by the most ambitious, energetic, enthusiastic and divine being – Toni P. Lyubenova! Just kidding, one always has a choice and mine was to be involved in the creation and, hopefully for a long time, the maintenance of the association. I agreed to assist because from the vantage point of my known experience, professional contact and personal desire to assist people with implementing the various ideas brought to Creatosphere, we can mutually reach personal growth, the development of new competencies and the awakening of unknown abilities, as well as the ever so popular lifelong learning. Man is a social animal and needs his peers in every respect. Sometimes a kick is needed, sometimes a gentle nudge and one has no idea what one is capable of. And the satisfaction of being able to contribute to someone’s positive feeling and development is priceless.

How do you live through art in your daily life?

I’ve tried painting, singing, crafting things (unsuccessfully), I’ve visited many exhibitions and galleries to try and challenge myself, but the daily sense of the presence of art in my life is dance and music. Bulgarian folk dancing has been my companion since kindergarten with some interruptions. How much art is hidden in the costumes, the headscarves, the dance steps and movements, the transport to “a time” – each from different parts of Bulgaria, cannot be described in words and is a delight to the eyes and ears. And music is a friend, a teacher, a therapy, a celebration. More and more I have had to learn to make things from felt, paper, thread, all sorts of handmade materials for some time now, and seen through the eyes of children, all the resulting inventions light up and come alive and warm the heart.

How do you see Creatosphere making an impact in the community here in Sofia, Bulgaria, and beyond?

It cannot go unnoticed nor unappreciated. The dreamer in me will say that the idea behind the association is both innocent and benevolent, but also powerful and passionate, and will endure. And the attorney in me will say that it’s all in the association’s constitution.

Can you share a moment when you witnessed the transformative power of art in someone’s life, and how it impacted you personally?

I have both personal stories and lived ones. I can write an essay on the subject. In short, art is power, it can change lives, both for the author and the viewers/evaluators/participants. It can make a huge difference to innovation globally, but also to the development of any micro universe, and the direction is only forward.

As a founder of Creatosphere, what’s the most unexpected skill or talent you bring to the team?

The lack of reluctance to fight the system. Knowledge of the law, as far as can be considered unexpected. The ability to predispose people to share and reveal with ease even the innermost drawers of their souls. In summary, an analysis – legal and spiritual.

Finally, if you could sum up the mission of Creatosphere in one sentence to inspire others, what would it be?

This is the most difficult task for a verbose person. Why do we read these books if we have to sum them up in one sentence? But if that is the task, the most banal but also the most powerful message is “nothing is impossible”. Nothing is impossible for Creatosphere and its co-founders, and for everyone else who has and will be the first to come into contact with the fellowship.