Forgotten Romanian painters – Expanding the historical and artistic horizon
“Forgotten Romanian Painters”, part of the Art Safari season which starts on March 7, brings together more than one hundred paintings signed by dozens of artists who have made a significant contribution to the history of Romanian art, but whose names have been lost or intentionally omitted with time.
The project aims to put into an exhibition format and to carry forward the scientific approach of the book of the same name signed by Tudor Octavian, journalist and art chronicler, published in 2003.
“Some have had to choose between a tense life, haunted by hardship, by the imminence of competition, and a good job, but paid. And they preferred comfort. No one is to blame for their choices. Just as no one is to be blamed for not having become a heritage painter in his youth. We have been accustomed to dividing art in two: a small section for the chosen and a large one for the undefined. Now, with the passage of time, the boundary line between the two territories is shifting, biting into the estates of the elders and appropriating the neglected by fortune,” writes Tudor Octavian in his book. “From what I have discovered, learned and understood in the years that I have been concerned with the ‘forgotten painters’, I can say that there were many more painters in Romania than is now known”.
Tudor Octavian is the curator of this exhibition together with Maria Munteanu, who answered curatorial questions:
Who are the ‘forgotten’ painters included in the Art Safari exhibition?
Maria Munteanu: The exhibition at Art Safari puts in a new light the research carried out by Tudor Octavian in the early 2000s. This study brought to the public’s attention Romanian artists whose names have been lost over time, but who have made a significant contribution to Romanian art. We sought to include in the exhibition the most representative works by these artists, more than 40 names.
Ipolit Strâmbu, Nicolae Grant, Elena Popea, Constantin Aricescu, Mihail Simonidy, Nina Arbore, Mina Byck Wepper and Alexandru Țipoia are just a few of these names.
What periods, and styles did you choose from?
Maria Munteanu: The artists selected by Tudor Octavian in his study were part of several artistic periods in the history of our art, all within a century, between 1850 and 1950. The public will be able to find different artistic styles in the exhibition, reflecting the personality and talent of each artist.
On what criteria was the selection made?
Maria Munteanu: We tried to include in the exhibition the most representative works of the Romanian painters included in the book. Its selection remains relevant to this day, when almost all the artists mentioned remain unknown to the public.
Where do the works on display come from?
Maria Munteanu: The paintings come from private and museum collections in Romania.
What was the reason for their being in a cone of obscurity? How many of those overlooked were ‘intentionally forgotten’?
Maria Munteanu: Most of the painters included in the study were simply overshadowed by other generation peers, who became representative of a certain artistic period. Of course, the political context between 1948 and 1989 meant that everything had to be controlled, and many artists were associated with the “bourgeois-establishment” period, to use a term favored by the communists. They were therefore not included in exhibitions and publications and their names were forgotten.
Which story stands out?
Maria Munteanu: Certainly, all the artistic presences of these painters enrich the landscape of Romanian art history from 1850-1950. Therefore, the exhibition can be considered by the public as an opportunity to broaden their historical and artistic horizons, to gain a deeper knowledge of Romanian art.
Foto: Nicolae Grant, „Pridvor la Golești” (c) Art Safari
