Catalin Grigoras (born October 13, 1968, Iasi, Romania) is a visual artist with contemporary aesthetic flair and keen observer of its impact in social acceptance.
He attended primary school in Iasi, then the Philology-History high school ’Mihai Eminescu’ in the same town, town with ancient historical and literary traditions but in times of great artistic and ideological restrictions. The period after completion of studies put its mark on the nature of his humanist character, remained hidden somewhere but fertile thanks to some outstanding teachers who have found in him the sensibility, the artistic force to constant search and the desire for free expression, sometimes rebellious, of self.
In 1990, the reference year in his artistic training, he goes to the studio of a painter that was decorating churches and doing traditional Byzantine icons. The impact strong; his vision of Byzantine mural decorations of the time is disappointing. In a circle of friends he was saying the things he was doing now shatter him (Iasi, September 8, 1990, in his friend’s house, Catalin Anuta, an exceptional poet that was hosting mettings on cultural themes in the new socio-political context of the time. Anuta died a few years later, when in full creative growth).
For 2 years he studies mural techniques and works with the effervescence of the young guy eager to learn, passing from an work shop to another, in search of new visions and cromatic and compositional expressions on typical Byzantine canon.
After two years of apprenticeship, he leaves the group of churches’ painters and meets by chance in Bucharest Dorin Danila, a sculptor-restorer, and moves into his workshop and participates in mural decoration projects for the Vatican Embassy and the Italian, Anglican and French Churches in Bucharest.
In 1993 exhibits some paintings and becomes member of the Assoctions of the Plastic Artists Bucharest.
Between 1993 and 2000 he is working on various secular and religious mural decorations projects and participates with paintings on events alike.
In 2000 takes the opportunity of leaving for Italy with no hesitation. It was the house of da Vinci, Michelangelo and so many other reference names; he always dreamed about it in hope of new cultural enlightenment.
After two years of work in a mechanic factory to maintain, obtains a scholarship for The European Centre for Restoration of Architectural Heritage, Isola di San Servolo, Venezia, where he will come back in 2009 to keep lectures about ’Pittura sull Tavola’ in the new center founded in Thiene Villa Fabris, Vicenza.
The contact with various artisans that were attending the classes, the information flow, the european concept of conservation and restoration of heritage, the legislation, all this convince him to pursue an academic career.
He is working on academic sites in Isola San Lazarro with fellow students. In 2003 he returns to Romania to work on diverse sites of mural restoration.
In 2004-2004 he is licensed in Conservation and Restoration of wall paintings in the department of Conservation-Restoration of the University of Fine Arts, Decorative Arts and Design ’George Enescu’ Iasi, during which he participates in restoring the wall paintings in three important churches in North of Moldova: St. Nicolae-Popauti, Sucevita and Molvovita. He also participates on ’Saving Sacred Relics of European Medieval Cultural Heritage’ Symposium, one of the topics being the implications of laser interventions on fixed and mobile heritage asstes, guest of honor being Prof. John Asmus UC San Diego.
Paints and experiments alongside new means of artistic expression, participating in group exhibitions, becoming this way a member of The Artists Union(UAP) of Romania.
He gets involved in structural knowledge projects on Architectural Heritage and colaborates with local and foreing specialists.
Participates in stone restoration and conservation works in Germany and in important European craftsmen events as Stonemasons Festival, Trondheim, Norway, 2009.
The period 2008-2013 can be characterized by a sustained activity both in conservation-restoration and also in visual arts.
In 2013 exhibits at The Palace of Culture, Targu Mures, Romania, his visual artworks that treats social issues in a modern vision.
No comments:
Post a Comment