Независимите културни актьори като двигатели на социокултурна промяна
Independent Cultural Actors as Agents of Sociocultural Change

Summary/Abstract: This article examines the role of independent cultural actors as agents of sociocultural change in Bulgaria under conditions of institutional instability and fragmented cultural policies. Drawing on Pierre Bourdieu’s theory of the cultural field and George Yúdice’s concept of culture as a resource, the study explores how independent initiatives reconfigure positions, practices, and regimes of legitimacy without overcoming the structural inequalities of the field. The empirical analysis is based on qualitative anthropological research, including long-term fieldwork and semi-structured interviews conducted between 2021 and 2024. Four case studies are examined, representing different local contexts and organizational models: the association „VT Events“ and the cultural space TAM (Veliko Tarnovo); the association „Talyana“, the ReBonkers space, and the Buna Festival (Varna); the „Blue Cube“ Foundation, the Swimming Pool space, and the Nine Elephants Festival (Sofia); and „The Gallery“ and the „Studios“, an informal artist-run space (Plovdiv). The analysis is structured around four analytical dimensions: organizational models and the distribution of functions; regimes of sustainability and temporal horizons; audience engagement and regimes of public visibility; relations with institutions and cultural policies. The article shows that independent cultural actors take on expanded societal functions and develop specific practices of cultural production and mediation, but their transformative role remains limited by project dependency, institutional uncertainty, and the tensions inherent in the cultural field itself.

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