17. Cliff at Balchik

Rodica Maniu's encounter with Balchik occurred during her travels with her life partner, the painter Samuel Mützner, along the Black Sea. The house with the terrace built right above the bay was their home-studio during the warm seasons and served as an unlimited source of inspiration for the artists. In the spacious workshop of the couple, Balchika Moșescu-Măciucă recounts, "there, in the late hours, thoughts of writers like I.M. Sadoveanu, Dr. Voiculescu, Emanoil Bucuța, Camil Petrescu and the actor Puiu Iancovescu, a close friend of the hosts, would gather." The couple will undoubtedly become an important presence among the group of artists who gathered in Balchik during the summer. The settlement on the Black Sea coast was perceived as a space of imagination, rich in pictorial motifs, so we often find the blue of the sky and sea, the white of rocks and houses, or the brown inserts of fences and roofs. Human silhouettes will also be present, often tatars covered with veils will be arranged in the landscape, blending and embracing its color. The artist's friendship with Penca Moșescu, wife of Octavian Moșescu (mayor of Balchik at that time), opened Balcica Moșescu-Măciucă, their daughter's, appetite and interest in art and artists along the Silver Coast. She noted about the artist couple Rodica Maniu - Samuel Mützner: "In the city, we always met them together, they were inseparable; when they painted, each retreated into their own world.". From her we also learn that they spent a lot of time in Balchik, "they came in the spring and left late in the fall". One of the most fruitful periods in the creation of Rodica Maniu occurred, therefore, against the background of seasonal settlement on the Black Sea coast; this period is intensely represented in her works.

References

ANDREESCU, Viorica, "Rodica Maniu", Meridiane Publishing House, Bucharest, 1987.

Dimensions

width 44 cm, height 29 cm

Description

signed bottom right, in pencil, "R. Maniu"

Research information

The work is reproduced in "Balcic", Balcica Măciucă, Semne Publishing House, Bucharest, 2013, on page 184.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

For clarifications regarding the bidding procedure, hammer price costs, guarantee, payment, and collection terms for the winning lot, we recommend carefully reading/re-reading the Bidding Regulations.

For additional information regarding the lot and the auction, please contact the Art Consultants Department.