ContourGlobal Maritsa East 3 Back’s Children's Competition

The finalists in Leonardo – Artist and Engineer, the Stara Zagora-based competition for children's paintings, were announced today by organizers from Gala's Art Gallery. The date was chosen to coincide with the birthday of Leonardo da Vinci, the famous Renaissance painter and scientist whose creative work keeps inspiring the new generations. The gallery's project was implemented in partnership with the Municipality of Stara Zagora, and ContourGlobal Maritsa East 3 was its official sponsor.

The awarding ceremony was attended by Galya Koleva and Todor Kolev, owners of Gala's Art Gallery, Quinto Di Ferdinando, Director of ContourGlobal Maritsa East 3 TPP, Ivan Arabadzhiev, artist.

„When we decided to hold this competition we aimed at provoking interest in the children and stimulating them to try to create a real painting with a preliminary defined format but with potential to lay the foundation of their own artistic style”, said the owner of the gallery, Galya Koleva.

„For us this is a multilayer project which carries a lot of energy”, said Quinto Di Ferdinando, Director of ContourGlobal Maritsa East 3 TPP. “We are glad when we see our children showing such enthusiasm and we want them to know that they can rely on the support of the adults but they should first of all see the world through their own eyes and give rein to their fancy, because sometimes they see much more than we do.”

“We consider this project a special one because it was created by the family of one of our colleagues, Eng. Todor Kolev, head of Electrical and Controlling Measurement Devices. We are glad that he got inspiration from Leonardo and our company, and then our company supported his idea. For us it is important to have colleagues who work hard but are also active in their community”, Quinto Di Ferdinando added.

The children participating in the competition were asked to submit a painting sized 46x55 cm made with oil or acrylic paints on a canvas stretched on a wooden frame. Each painting had to be dedicated to one of Leonardo's great inventions with which he got ahead of his time. The children were able to get their inspiration from an especially created website containing stories about some of the genius’ boldest innovations. The competition was open to children either living or studying in the city of Stara Zagora or the municipality and aged between 9 and 14.

30 enthusiasts joined the contest. Their paintings were assessed by an independent jury involving Ivan Arabadzhiev, a famous artist from Stara Zagora, Tosho Stefanov, representative of the Municipality of Stara Zagora, Daniel Kiryakov, representative of ContourGlobal Maritsa East 3, Galya Koleva (Gala), artist, and Todor Kolev.

The project awarded most of the votes is entitled The Great Leonardo and His Inventions, and its author, 13-year-old Emanuel Dinkov Tenev, received the big prize, a notebook with Windows 8. Air Screw by the 11-year-old Paula Georgieva Todorova ranked second and Fountain y Rut Petrova Assa, 11 years ranked third. The two girls were awarded tablets operating with Android. The participants ranked from 4^th to 10^th place received special sets featuring paints, canvas, and brushes. Apart from the special awards, the sponsor of the competition also provided gifts to encourage the enthusiasm of all participants. The organisers surprised everyone by announcing their new website specialised in children's drawing competitions. ARTCONTESTOR.COM will aim at inspiring and supporting all talented children of Bulgaria regardless of their origin and place of residence.

About ContourGlobal Maritsa East 3

ContourGlobal Maritsa East 3 is an important part of the large energy family of the international company ContourGlobal, independent power producer. The plant guarantees the electrical independence of Bulgaria by utilising local fuel and supplying the national energy market.

In Bulgaria, ContourGlobal is the majority owner of ContourGlobal Maritsa East 3 TPP, one of the four thermal power plants in the Maritsa East Complex. It is the first coal-fired thermal power plant in the Balkans which operates in full compliance with the highest European standards for safety and environment preservation. ContourGlobal Maritsa East 3 produces clean reliable electricity utilising Bulgarian sourced fuel at a competitive price.