Serban Savu's Paintings Reflect Post-Communist Romania's Legacy at David Nolan Gallery
David Nolan Gallery is currently showcasing an exhibition of new paintings by Serban Savu, accompanied by an excerpt from his monograph. Born in 1978, Savu witnessed the 1989 revolution in Romania that opposed Nicolae Ceaușescu. His artwork critiques the regime responsible for the destruction of half of Romania’s villages. Notable pieces include "The Gray 10-floor Block" (2008) and "Unveiling the New Furniture" (2010), which explore themes of communist housing using a muted palette of browns and grays. In "Ludus" (2009), he contrasts traditional villages with agro-towns. Savu studied under Ioan Sbarciu in Cluj and honed his realism skills during a residency in Venice. His monograph, "Serban Savu: Paintings 2005-2010," is published by Hatje Cantz.
Key facts
- Serban Savu had an exhibition of new paintings at David Nolan Gallery.
- Savu was born in 1978 and was eleven during Romania's 1989 revolution.
- Nicolae Ceaușescu was deposed and executed in 1989, ending four decades of communist rule.
- Ceausescu's regime demolished half of Romania's 13,000 villages and built massive structures like the House of the People in Bucharest.
- Savu paints drab buildings and industrial structures, such as in "The Gray 10-floor Block" (2008).
- He works from photographs assembled in Photoshop, depicting actual places he knows.
- Savu studied at the art school in Cluj under professor Ioan Sbarciu in the 1990s.
- He learned from Renaissance painting during a 2002-04 residency in Venice on a Nicolae Lorga grant.
- Savu's peers include Ciprian Mureșan and Cristi Pogăcean, who exhibit with Cluj gallery Plan B.
- His monograph "Serban Savu: Paintings 2005-2010" is published by Hatje Cantz and available from David Nolan Gallery.
Entities
Artists
- Serban Savu
- Ciprian Mureșan
- E.M. Cioran
- Thomas Jones
- Giorgio Morandi
- Adolph Menzel
- Herta Müller
- Giorgio de Chirico
- Salvador Dalí
- René Magritte
- Brueghel
- Ioan Sbarciu
- Markus Lüpertz
- Victor Man
- Israel Hershberg
- Cornel Brudascu
- Adrian Ghenie
- Neo Rauch
- Alberti
- Elizabeth Peyton
- Paul R.
- Duncan Hannah
- Ileana Ceaușescu
- Eugène Ionesco
Institutions
- David Nolan Gallery
- Hatje Cantz
- Plan B
- Jerusalem Studio School
- Securitate
Locations
- Romania
- Bucharest
- Cluj
- Naples
- Venice
- Italy
- Germany
- Leipzig
- Jerusalem
- Israel
- Versailles
- France
- Wales
- United Kingdom
- Carpathians
- Danube