“The summer season of “Art Safari” will be about love! The installations and many stories in the exhibition “Love Stories” with the adventures, stories and secrets of couples are sure to captivate the audience. And Romanian ultra-modern art is well represented in the Dacia-Romania Palace: we have a duel between nymphs and zombies in the vision of two young artists: Undine and Baraka.” Ioana Ciocan, CEO of Art Safari and Commissioner of Romania at the Venice Art Biennale.

Love Stories, curated by Lucy Peltz, exhibition in partnership with the National Portrait Gallery, London

Love Soars in Dacia-Romania Palace Season 12 Portraits of famous couples such as Victoria and David Beckham, John Lennon and Yoko Ono and more. from the collection of the National Portrait Gallery in London can be seen in the center of Bucharest. The famous London museum has the world’s largest collection of portraits of some of the most famous personalities.

“From the 16th century until today, the portrait has been closely associated with the idea of ​​love and desire and the social recognition of relationships. Portraits are visual records of love, kinship, memories of dead or absent loved ones, and have always been given as a token of love. Love and relationships are thus a longstanding theme in the history of portraiture, which will also be explored in Love Stories through a selection of key works from the collection of the National Portrait Gallery in London.’ Lucy Peltz, Curator of Love Stories, National Portrait Gallery.

Constantin Artakino (1870 – 1954), curator: Elena Olariou, exhibition created in partnership with the Bucharest City Museum

A prominent figure in Romanian history, Artacino is considered a master of Romanian orientalism of the Dobrudja brand. In the interwar period, he stood out thanks to the silk brush that characterized him, and works written in clear, elegant lines, under the sign of balance and harmony. Due to his family’s origins (the port of Artachi, the Sea of ​​Marmara, the Ottoman Empire), he traveled the Balkan world and was one of its most skilled portraitists.

He studied at the School of Belle-Arte, where he was a student of Theodore Haman, and continued his studies in Paris, at the Académie Julian, where he was a colleague of Nicolae Vermont and Stefan Lucian, with whom he befriended and formed an artistic work. groups Artachino worked in the village of Barbizon as well as in the forest of Fontainebleau, following the example of Nicolae Grigorescu, whom he admired, but he also traveled to London, Milan, Venice and Istanbul. He also painted a lot in Bulgaria, in Sofia, Silistra and Balchik, in Dobruja or on the banks of the Danube.

Ion Alin Georgiou (1929-2001), artist of the Hanging Gardens, curator: Ana-Maria Smigelshi

Canvaslarge-scale abstracts signed by one of the most prominent artists of Romanian abstraction and postmodernism, the period of Cold War ideology, Ion Alin Georgiou, will be exhibited at the Palace of Dacia-Romania. Georgiou was born into a humble family of workers and had a turbulent life story. He entered Professor Camil Ressu’s class at the Nicolae Grigorescu Art Institute with an “exceptional” grade, but graduated without a degree on the grounds that the work “Criange and Eminescu in Iasi” was considered nationalistic and formalistic during the period of socialist realism.

He was not accepted at official exhibitions, forcing him to unload potatoes at night in the barn, work as a postman, all this time without having a workshop and painting as he could. Until 1958, when he began to be invited to almost all important exhibitions in the country. Very demanding of his art, he organized very few solo exhibitions. The curatorial text of the exhibition was signed by Andriy Plesha.

Nymphs and Zombies from Romanian Contemporary Art, curated by Ruth Gibbard

The Palace will also host an artistic battle between two artists with diametrically opposed visions: Undina Slimvoski (b. 1982) vs. Paul Marat Baraka (born 1994) in the exhibition Nymphs and Zombies: Undine’s Hope and Baraka’s Despair. Undine is an artist of calm mythology, a bestiary of beautiful fairy tales, which testifies to the artist’s active interest in the melancholy aesthetics of the nineteenth century. While Baraka focuses on shocking and provocative subjects and a hyper-realistic style in both painting and sculpture. Baraka’s approach is also critical, emphasizing the banality of evil through sarcasm and irony.

In addition to the four exhibitions, Art Safari will also present a series of installations that complete the experience of the visit. And for children, the Palace has its own “Art-safari”, which includes creative workshops and tours of exhibitions. More details at https://www.artsafari.ro/asb-kids/.

“Art Safari” program (June 30 – September 10, 2023)

• Thursday-Sunday – 12:00-21:00
• Night tours – every Friday and Saturday from 10:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m. (special guided tours at all exhibitions and prosecco)
• Tickets: artsafari.ro or directly at the entrance
• Palatul Dacia-Romania, street Lipscani, no. 18-20, Bucharest

About Art Safari Bucharest: Art Safari, supported by Lidl, GLO, Porsche and Garanti BBVA, specializes in creating exhibition pavilions. Now in its 12th year, the annual organizer of the Bucharest Art Pavilion – Romania’s largest conglomerate of art exhibitions – organizes large-scale retrospective exhibitions in partnership with Romanian and international art museums and private collectors that offer a resurgence of heritage values. With a strong educational side, its mission is to bring art closer to the public and educate new generations by organizing art workshops for children, tours and contemporary art exhibitions in non-traditional locations such as Henri Coanda Airport or the Bucharest Metro. The art safari is funded by the Ministry of Culture and carried out in partnership with the Bucharest City Museum, the National Art Museum of Romania and the Romanian Institute of Culture. The official partner of Art Safari is BCR. Over 400,000 visitors have been registered in 11 editions so far. More information: artsafari.ro.

About the National Portrait Gallery, London: Founded in 1856, the National Portrait Gallery tells Britain’s story through portraiture, using art to bring history to life and explore the present. From world figures to unsung heroes, the NPG collection is filled with stories that have shaped and continue to shape a nation. We celebrate the power of portraiture and offer encounters with some of the world’s greatest and most exciting new artists. We promote the art of portraiture in all mediums to reach the widest possible audience. We preserve, develop and exhibit the largest collection of portraits in the world.

Gallery in st. Martin’s Place, London, closed until 22 June 2023. During this time, major building work is taking place for the Inspiring People project, which will transform the gallery, including a complete refurbishment of the building and the opening of a new learning centre. While the museum was closed, the National Portrait Gallery continued to exhibit the collection digitally and through a number of partnerships and collaborations across the country. Find out more at: www.npg.org.uk.