I am an analogue artist in a post-digital world, passionate about objects and technologies that have become obsolete, and the stories and history they have generated. Usually, my creations are assemblages or installations.
I am also a cultural manager, with all that this entails: curation, organization, exhibition setup, and representation. The project I founded and represent is called “Celula de Artă,” and it is artist-run. We exhibit artists in five permanent spaces in Bucharest. I have been doing this out of passion for seven years, together with my team—there are no funds supporting us. We usually discover and represent young, emerging artists—some of them students or recent graduates, as they are the ones who most need a springboard into the spotlight. But we also work with and represent established artists—some of whom grew up alongside me.
What is the Romanian in you?
As an artist, the boundaries of personal identity are hard to define. Of course, the language I think and speak in is Romanian, as well as the environment in which I grew up, my family, my preferences regarding food. But I believe that resilience, adaptability, and the ability to achieve a lot with little are also qualities of Romanian origin.
What is the European in you?
We are all more or less immersed in the same cultural environment. We share common influences, whether in the films we watch or the music we listen to, but more importantly, I believe we are exposed to the same artistic and cultural influences. As such, I think the boundaries between national and European identity are quite vague and flexible. In art, we all speak the same language, even though we have unique and well-defined voices.
I’m so happy today,
like I’m saying goodbye to life,
like I’m putting an apple in my heart,
so it would stop beating, just so it would fucking stand,
so I can come up to you and say:
“Dude, you must be thirsty,
take a bite of an apple!”
