Twenty years in finance at an international company would not have predicted a turn to art. For Todor Popov, however, it was the strict world of numbers and rules that turned out to be the starting point for a new passion – comics, urban legends and cultural experiments.
Today, he is the co-founder of Maina Town – a platform that unites comics, festivals, digital products and local stories, the driving force behind Fantasy – The Non-Museum of Plovdiv. In this innovative space, Todor, in co-authorship with Dimitar Petrov, Ani Yordanova and over 20 artists, overturns the classical museum logic and turns the viewer into a participant.
Popov describes himself as a “trickster” – a person who juggles between a museum, a publishing house and events, provoking and surprising. For him, sustainability in culture is a dialogue between the past and the present, and the mission – for Plovdiv to be not only a cultural capital in the past, but a living, breathing art here and now.
You come from finance – a world of numbers and rules. How does someone who spent 20 years in this field end up with comics and surreal installations?
It started as a hobby, then I found that it helped me to distract myself from the rational world and step outside the rules. Gradually, it turned into a passion – a way to look at life and culture from a different angle. And finally, we decided to try to turn it into a business venture that would combine creativity with the structured approach that I bring from finance.
Photography: Tanya Koritarova
“Fantasy non-museum” recently opened its doors in Plovdiv. What is a non-museum and how does this space change the way people perceive Plovdiv?
A non-museum is a place where the viewer is not just an observer, but a participant. There are no “do not touch” or “keep quiet” signs, here culture is experienced, not studied from a distance. This way, people see Plovdiv in a new light – not only as a city with history, but also as a space for play, emotions and imagination.
You have repeatedly noted the irreplaceable role of the team in the projects you work on. Who are the people you create with and what is the quality that connects you?
There are a lot of people who have participated in various Maina Town projects. There is also a core team, of course: Ani Yordanova and Dimitar Petrov are the reason for us to start in the first place; Georgi Srebrev and Borislava created the new directions such as the magazine and events; Mash Mitaka supplemented the team with his skills behind the bar. We are connected by creativity, humor and the desire to create products that are not just consumed, but experienced.
Photography: Tanya Koritarova
Plovdiv is a city with layers of history and culture. How do you choose which stories and images to bring to the forefront in your projects?
This is a mystical process. Many people helped us with the content of the Non-Museum – from historians and researchers to ordinary residents and guests of the city. Svetlana Kuyumdzhieva was an invaluable advisor on what to include and what not. We also read the books of Evgeni Todorov and Mimo Raichev. But in the end we always leave room for imagination – because it is what turns history into a living legend.
What does sustainability in culture mean to you – to preserve the past, to create a new one, or to find a way for both to go together?
Rather, the latter. For me, sustainability is a dialogue between past and present – to preserve authenticity, but also to create new layers on top of it. This is also the goal of the Non-Museum of Plovdiv – for each exhibit to be both an archive and a fantasy, an image of the city in motion.
How do you change the picture in Plovdiv?
Mainly by creating new event formats and ways of entertainment that make the city more alive and interesting for its residents and guests. We try to add energy, color and an element of surprise – so that Plovdiv is seen not only as a cultural capital in the past, but as a city that is living, breathing art here and now.
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