BTA provided its LIK typeface to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs free of charge at the BTA National Press Club on Friday. The document settling the rights on the typeface was signed by BTA Director General Kiril Valchev and Foreign Minister Velislava Petrova.
In his speech, Valchev said that the cooperation between the Bulgarian News Agency and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has a centuries-old history. He explained that BTA began as a division of the Ministry and was housed in the current central building of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (BAS). The first BTA correspondents were also diplomats, he pointed out, adding that author Yordan Yovkov in Bucharest was one of them.
Valchev noted that BTA provides the LIK typeface on the eve of July 19 – the Day of the Bulgarian Diplomatic Service. He added that the agency’s cooperation with Bulgarian diplomats has yielded concrete results in that BTA has a permanent presence abroad with nine national press clubs. He went on to list initiatives carried out thanks to the cooperation with Bulgarian embassies, consulates general, and consulates.
“I hope that providing this typeface to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will be the first very big step towards Bulgaria, along with the Ministry of Culture, starting to have a unified visual appearance – something we are trying to do here at BTA,” said the Director General.
Valchev presented the Foreign Minister with the issue of LIK magazine dedicated to its 60th anniversary last year, as well as the joint publication of BTA and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in three languages ”Bulgaria at UNESCO”.
Minister Petrova said that it is extremely important that the LIK typeface is compatible with all languages of the European Union. “This typeface will allow us, during a future Bulgarian Presidency of the Council of the EU, to take advantage of this opportunity, make greater use of this typeface, and highlight the Bulgarian alphabet,” Petrova noted. “This is a tremendous opportunity for us to collectively establish the Bulgarian alphabet as the foundation of our public and international communication,” the Minister added.
She described typefaces as part of a country’s visual language and the new ambassadors of cultural identity. “Furthermore, in diplomatic communication, every diplomatic note, official letter, or message from Bulgaria begins with the letters of the Bulgarian alphabet. Starting today, these letters will also carry a new, modern look and truly represent a step toward presenting a unified image of Bulgaria across all its institutions,” said the Foreign Minister.
“I will continue to work alongside my colleagues from the other ministries. I hope we can start a movement that will be taken up by the other ministries as well. The most important thing is that this is truly a step toward establishing a unified and recognizable image of our country – an image of a nation with a rich cultural heritage, but also of a nation that is looking toward the future,” Petrova said.
In her words, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will continue to support BTA in every way possible so that the talent demonstrated through this typeface reaches more people and is adopted by more Bulgarian institutions.
LIK is an original Bulgarian typeface officially registered with Bulgaria’s Patent Office and developed specifically for BTA by a team of the National Academy of Art as part of the redesign of the agency’s LIK magazine and broader visual identity. BTA provides the typeface completely free of charge for unrestricted use by all public institutions, schools, universities, and cultural organizations in Bulgaria.
