Bucharest marked its 567th anniversary with a city-wide weekend of music, culture and digital art, with iMapp Bucharest Winners League 2026 transforming Constitution Square and the Palace of Parliament into the centre of the celebrations.

Approximately 200,000 people celebrated Bucharest Days over the September 19–20 weekend, taking part in events spread across the Romanian capital as the city marked its 567th anniversary.

From pedestrianized streets and the Dâmbovița River to museums, public spaces and Constitution Square, Bucharest turned its anniversary into a city-wide cultural experience.

One of the weekend’s central events was iMapp Bucharest Winners League 2026, which brought international electronic music, monumental video mapping and digital art together in front of the Palace of Parliament.

Rudimental performed on Saturday, followed by Danish electronic trio WhoMadeWho on Sunday, while seven international video-mapping artists competed across the approximately 23,000-square-metre façade of the Palace of Parliament.

According to the organisers, 150,000 people attended events organised by Bucharest City Hall through ARCUB in Constitution Square, along Calea Victoriei and in other parts of the city.

IMAPP TURNS THE PALACE OF PARLIAMENT INTO A GIANT DIGITAL CANVAS

Now in its 11th edition, iMapp Bucharest continued its mission of bringing New Media art into public space.

This year’s theme, PAST. FORWARD., explored the relationship between memory, identity, time and the future, with the architecture of the Palace of Parliament becoming part of the artwork itself.

The Winners League brought together seven artists and studios that had previously won major international video-mapping competitions in Europe, Asia and the Americas.

The competing works were:

  • MP-STUDIO — “EVERYWHEN” — Hungary

  • WANG — “Voyage of Love” — China

  • Studio Zoltán Varga — “Neural Heritage” — Japan

  • V.P.M — “Resonance” — Germany

  • John Tettenborn & Kourtney Lara Ross — “ECHO” — France

  • Leticia RMS — “ANTENNA” — Brazil

  • ruestungsschmie.de — “XXXL³” — USA

For several hours, the Palace of Parliament became more than a landmark in the Bucharest skyline. Light, sound and moving images reshaped its enormous façade, creating a visual experience designed to be seen from across Constitution Square.

The Jury Award went to German studio V.P.M. for Resonance, while Brazilian artist Leticia RMS received the Audience Award for ANTENNA.

The competition’s livestream also extended the event beyond Bucharest, attracting more than 20,000 viewers internationally.

FROM INTERNATIONAL FESTIVALS TO BUCHAREST

The Winners League format connects iMapp with the international video-mapping community by bringing previous competition winners together in a single event.

The seven finalists arrived in Bucharest after winning competitions including the Zsolnay Light Festival, Asia Mapping Art Contest, 1Minute Projection Mapping, SCHLOSSLICHTSPIELE Karlsruhe, Video Mapping Festival Lille, Festa das Luzes and LUMA Projection Arts Festival.

That international connection has become a defining part of iMapp’s identity.

After 11 editions, the Bucharest event has developed into more than a projection show. It places contemporary digital art directly into the city’s public space and uses the architecture of Bucharest as a stage for international New Media artists.

NADIA COMĂNECI’S PERFECT 10 RETURNS TO THE PALACE

Saturday’s programme also included one of the weekend’s most significant moments: “NADIA — The Perfect 10.”

Fifty years after Nadia Comăneci’s historic performance at the 1976 Montreal Olympic Games, the story of her perfect score was brought back to life through a special projection created by Mindscape & Carmen Lidia Vidu.

The production connected one of the defining moments in Romanian sporting history with the technology of contemporary digital art.

It also created a direct link with the iMapp theme.

Half a century ago, the scoreboard in Montreal was not designed to display a perfect 10. In 2026, that historic moment was projected across a 23,000-square-metre building in the centre of Bucharest.

Comăneci also addressed the audience directly with a message marking the anniversary.

RUDIMENTAL BRING THE FESTIVAL ENERGY

The music programme gave the weekend another international dimension.

On Saturday, Rudimental brought their drum & bass-driven sound to Constitution Square.

The British group’s mix of drum & bass, electronic, soul and pop has taken them from the UK scene to major international festivals, with tracks including “Feel the Love,” “Waiting All Night,” “These Days” and “Not Giving In” becoming part of their global catalogue.

Their DJ + Production set opened the evening ahead of the Winners League competition, putting the energy of a major electronic festival directly in front of one of Bucharest’s most recognisable landmarks.

WHOMADEWHO CLOSE THE WEEKEND

Sunday brought a different side of electronic music.

WhoMadeWho took the stage with their Hybrid DJ Set, bringing the Danish trio’s combination of electronic, indie and dance influences to Constitution Square.

The contrast between the two nights gave iMapp’s music programme two distinct identities: Rudimental’s drum & bass energy on Saturday, followed by WhoMadeWho’s more melodic and hybrid electronic sound on Sunday.

Together, the performances helped turn Constitution Square into more than a location for the video-mapping competition. For two days, it became a large-scale meeting point for music, digital art and the public.

BUCHAREST BECOMES THE DESTINATION

The anniversary weekend also highlighted Bucharest’s growing role as a destination for international visitors.

The city offered several different ways to experience its centre during the celebrations: walking along Calea Victoriei, exploring museums and heritage sites, travelling along the Dâmbovița River or experiencing international music and digital art in Constitution Square.

The wider Bucharest Days programme brought together five major components: iMapp Bucharest Winners League 2026, Străzi Deschise – Bucharest, Urban Promenade, Open Doors at Bucharest City Hall, Dâmbovița Apă Dulce and the Museum Triangle.

Calea Victoriei became a pedestrian promenade featuring sports, exhibitions, theatre, circus, concerts and guided tours.

On the Dâmbovița, free boat rides offered another perspective of the city, while Bucharest City Hall opened its doors to visitors interested in the building’s history and architecture.

The Museum Triangle connected the Grigore Antipa National Museum of Natural History, the National Museum of the Romanian Peasant and the National Museum of Geology through a joint programme featuring workshops, family activities, music and architectural lighting installations.

200,000 PEOPLE, ONE CITY

The scale of Bucharest Days made the anniversary about more than any single event.

Approximately 200,000 people celebrated across the city, while 150,000 attended events organised by Bucharest City Hall through ARCUB.

For two days, Bucharest’s streets, buildings, riverfront and public squares became part of the celebration.

Calea Victoriei became a promenade.

The Dâmbovița became a route through the city.

Museums opened their doors.

And Constitution Square became a stage for international electronic music and monumental digital art.

At iMapp, the Palace of Parliament became the visual centre of that experience, with Rudimental and WhoMadeWho providing two very different soundtracks to a weekend built around technology, culture and public space.

Bucharest’s 567th anniversary ultimately became a celebration of both where the city came from and where it is going.

The past provided the story. Digital art provided the language. Music provided the soundtrack. And for one weekend, approximately 200,000 people celebrated Bucharest together.

EVENT CREDITS

Organiser: Bucharest City Hall, through ARCUB

Main Partners: Banca Transilvania, Coca-Cola, Raffaello

Powered by: KISS FM

Institutional Partners: Romanian Parliament – Chamber of Deputies, SABIF, Apa Nova

Media Partners: Radio România Actualități, Radio România Cultural, București FM, AGERPRES, Adevărul, Historia, Happ, Daily Magazine, 9 AM, Garbo, G4Media, Kudika, Mediafax, Touch Magazine, Wall Street, Revista Biz, ICON Magazine, Cațavii

With the support of: STB, TPBI

Facebook: iMappBucharest
Instagram: imappbucharest
Website: imapp.ro/ro

For more information, visit ARCUB.

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