Ploiești continues to be a hub for urban interventions, encouraging the exploration of possible worlds through the Artown Festival, its third edition. From October 4-20, 2024, the city will become a stage for artistic interventions that transcend ordinary forms of reality: This year’s Artown Festival serves as a mere starting point from reality, with the theme surrealism. 2024 marks the centenary of surrealism, celebrating this revolutionary artistic movement that transformed perceptions of reality and the role of imagination in art and literature.
An open invitation to transform reality through visual and conceptual fragmentation, the third edition will feature over 15 murals, more than 60 street art interventions coming to life on the city’s streets, a sculpture trail, green space redesigns, public space events, and a new direction involving the temporary installation of an architectural pavilion. All these elements align with the festival’s artistic activism focus, designed to stimulate experimentation: from bas-reliefs and paste-ups to stickers and collages.
Ploiești is Romania’s Youth Capital this year, so Artown Festival introduces a new category, NextGen murals, aimed at emerging muralists. Selected artists will participate in transforming public spaces and will learn from behind-the-scenes about access to workspaces, refining techniques, administrative or time constraints, and the importance of building a portfolio and establishing an artistic identity based on collaboration and feedback.
Since art does not require a specific space and we enjoy having it both indoors and outdoors, the works will be discovered in a variety of settings: from building facades to surprising interiors, as surrealism offers infinite possibilities. Artown Festival is not just about art; it’s about community, collaboration, and creative engagement. It’s an opportunity to be part of a social manifesto that aims to reclaim the city through art, transforming public spaces into environments that explore new artistic expressions.
The artists participating in this movement come from both Romania and countries such as Portugal, Argentina, Russia, Spain, Ukraine, Moldova, France, Canada, the UK, and more, creating a global dialogue that also fosters creative exchange. In this context, art becomes a common language that transcends linguistic and cultural barriers, facilitating new connections between communities. International participation not only brings aesthetic variety but also strengthens the sense of unity and social cohesion, demonstrating that urban art can inspire and connect people in ways that transcend geographical boundaries.